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HISTORY  OF  GREECE 


COLLEGES  AND  HIGH  SCHOOLS. 


BY 


PHILIP   VAN    NESS    MYERS,    L.H.D., 

Professor  of  History  and  Political  Economy  in  the  University  of 

Cincinnati;  Author  of  "A   History  of  Rome,"  "Mediaeval 

AND  Modern  History,"  and  "  A  General  History." 


aXKc 


Boston,  U.S.A.,  anjj  London  : 

GINN   &   COMPANY,    PUBLISHERS. 

1895. 


Entered  at  Stationers'  Hall. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1895,  by 

PHILIP  VAN   NESS  MYERS, 
in  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


All  Rights  Reserved. 
I^NRY  MOFJSe  3TBl»HE*iS 


Typography  by  J.  S.  Cushing  &  Co.,  Norwood,  Mass.,  U.S.A. 
Presswork  by  Ginn  &  Co.,  Boston,  U.S.A. 


Oi^ 


PREFACE. 


THIS  work,  although  written  on  the  lines  which  I  drew  in 
my  Eastern  Nations  and  Greece,  is  practically  a  new  book. 
The  sketch  of  Greek  affairs  in  the  earlier  volume  is  compressed 
into  about  two  hundred  pages ;  the  present  narrative  fills  over 
five  hundred.  The  book  is  intended  for  more  mature  readers 
than  those  for  whom  the  work  named  was  written,  being  designed 
for  use  in  colleges  as  well  as  with  advanced  classes  in  high 
schools  and  seminaries.  In  writing  it,  I  have  kept  steadily  in 
view  the  original  design,  and  have  aimed  to  give  prominence  to 
the  permanent  elements  only  of  Greek  history.  Particularly  have 
I  exercised  care  not  to  overload  the  book  with  those  details  which 
confuse  without  informing  the  mind,  and  which  obstruct  instead 
of  helping  forward  the  narrative. 

In  the  proper  connections  I  have  indicated  the  import  for 
Greek  history  of  the  recent  archaeological  discoveries  on  Greek 
soil,  and  have  traced  the  development  of  the  Athenian  constitu- 
tion in  the  new  light  afforded  by  the  lately  found  Aristotelian 
treatise.  In  Part  Sixth,  in  special  chapters  devoted  to  art,  litera- 
ture, philosophy,  and  social  hfe  among  the  ancient  Greeks,  place 
has  been  found  for  matter  that  could  not  well  be  introduced  in 
earlier  chapters  without  breaking,  in  what  seemed  an  undesirable 
way,  the  continuity  of  the  political  narrative. 

o 1081 4 


vi  PREFACE. 

Besides  the  list  of  books  given  after  each  chapter  throughout 
the  work,  a  short  bibUography  in  which,  for  the  convenience  of 
the  reader,  the  books  are  classified  by  periods  and  subjects,  has 
been  appended  to  the  volume.  The  footnotes  throughout  the 
book  will  direct  the  student  to  some  of  the  most  important  of  the 
original  authorities. 

The  book  will  be  found  liberally  furnished  with  maps  and 
cuts  interpretative  of  the  text.  Several  of  the  colored  maps 
have  been  based  on  the  charts  accompanying  Freeman's  His- 
torical Geography  of  Europe  ;  others  have  been  reproduced  from 
Johnston's  Classical  Atlas. 

A  considerable  number  of  the  illustrations  have  been  engraved 
from  photographs ;  the  others  have  been  taken  from  Baumeister's 
Denkmaeler  des  klassischen  Altertums,  Boetticher's  Olympia, 
Jaeger's   Weligeschichte,  and  other  authentic  sources. 

My  last  words  must  be  words  of  grateful  acknowledgment 
to  the  scholars  and  friends  who  have  aided  me  in  my  task. 
To  Dr.  W.  W.  Goodwin  I  am  under  particular  obligation  for 
his  kindness  in  giving  me  his  opinion  on  several  points  of 
special  difficulty;  to  Dr.  George  W.  Botsford  I  am  deeply 
indebted  for  reading  the  proofs  of  the  chapters  covering 
Spartan  and  Athenian  constitutional  matters ;  also  to  my  friends 
and  colleagues,  Prof.  Wayland  R.  Benedict  and  Dr.  Frederick 
L.  Shoenle  I  owe  special  thanks,  to  the  former  for  helpful  suggest- 
ions touching  different  phases  of  Greek  Philosophy,  and  to  the 
latter  for  valuable  hints  on  matters  concerning  Greek  Literature. 

(Note. — The  footnote  references  throughout  the  book  to  Grote's  History 
are  invariably  to  the  edition  of  1888,  published  in  ten  volumes.) 

P.  V.  N.  M. 
University  of  Cincinnati, 
June,  1895. 


TABLE    OF   CONTENTS. 


Preface  

List  of  Maps 

List  of  Illustrations xi 


PAGE 
V 
X 


Part  First. 

HELLAS   BEFORE  THE  PERSIAN   WARS. 
(From  the  earliest  times  to  500  B.C.) 

CHAPTER 

,    I.    The  Land  and  the  Race i 

'    II.    Prehistoric  Hellas  according  to  Greek  Accounts 15 

'ill.    The  Inheritance  of  the  Historic  Greeks 35 

IV.   The  Rise  of  the  Spartan  Power  in  the  Peloponnesus 59 

V.    The  Age  of  Greek  Colonization  (about  750-600  B.C.) 75 

VI.    The  Age  of  the  Tyrants  (about  650-500  B.C.) 90 

VII.    The  History  of  Athens  up  to  the  Persian  Wars loi 

Part  Second. 

THE  PERSIAN  WARS. 

(500-479   B.C.) 

VIII.    Hellas  overshadowed  by  the  Rise  of  Persia 127 

IX.   The  Revolt  of  the  lonians  (500-493  B.C.) 141 

X.   The  First  and  Second   Expeditions  of  Darius   against   Greece 

(492-490  B.C.) 148 

XI.    The   Invasion   of    Greece    by   Xerxes:    the    March  to   Therma 

(480  B.C.) 164 

XII.    The  Invasion  of  Greece  by  Xerxes :  Thermopylae  and  Artemisium 

(480  B.C.) 176 

XIII.  The  Invasion  of  Greece  by  Xerxes :  Salamis  (480  B.C.) 194 

XIV.  The  Campaign  of  Mardonius:  Platsea  and  Mycale  (479  B.C.)  . . .  210 

vii 


CONTENTS. 


Part  Third, 
prom  the  persian  wars  to  the  beginning  of 

THE    PELOPONNESIAN  WAR. 

(478-431    B.C.) 
HAPTER  PAGE 

XV.   The  Making  of  the  Athenian  Empire  (479-445  B.C.) 227 

XVI.  The  Age  of  Pericles  (445-431  B.C.)  254 


Part  Fourth. 

THE  PELOPONNESIAN  WAR. 

(431-404    B.C.) 

XVII.  The  Immediate  Causes  of  the  War :  Troubles  at  Corcyra  and 

Potidaea 270 

XVIII.   From  the  Beginning  of  the  War  to  the  Peace  of  Nicias  (431- 

421  B.C.) 282 

XIX.   From  the  Peace  of  Nicias  to  the  Sicilian  Expedition  (421- 

416  B.C.) 327 

XX.   The  Sicilian  Expedition  (415-413  B.C.) 336 

XXI.    From   the    Sicilian  Expedition  to  the   Fall  of  Athens :    the 

Decelean  War  (413-404  B.C.) 372 


Part  Fifth.  '' 

FROM  THE  END  OF  THE  PELOPONNESIAN  WAR  TO  THE 
CONQUEST  OP  GREECE  BY  THE  ROMANS. 

(404-371    B.C.) 

XXII.   The  Spartan  Hegemony  (404-371  ^.c.) 39^ 

XXIII.  The  Ascendency  of  Thebes  (371-362  B.C.) 4" 

XXIV.  The  Greeks  of  Western  Hellas  (413-336  B.C.) 4^9 

XXV.   The  Rise  of  Macedonia:   Reign  of  Philip  II.  (359-336  B.C.)  .  429 

XXVI.   Alexander  the  Great  (336-323  BC) 44° 

XXVII.   The  Grseco-Roman  World  from  the  Death  of  Alexander  to 

the  Conquest  of  Greece  by  the  Romans  (323-146  B.C.)  ...     456 


CONTENTS.  ix 

Part  Sixth. 
GREEK  ART,   CULTURE,   AND   SOCIAL  LIFE. 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXVIII.    Greek  Architecture,  Sculpture,  and  Painting 470 

XXIX.   Greek  Literature 500 

XXX.   Greek  Philosophy  and  Science 521 

XXXI.   Social  Life  of  the  Greeks 542 

Bibliography 555 

Index,  and  Pronouncing  Vocabulary 559 


LIST   OF   COLORED    MAPS. 


PAGE 

1.  General  Reference  Map  of  Ancient  Greece 6 

2.  Greece  below  Thermopylae 70 

3.  Greece  and  the  Greek  Colonies 80 

4.  Map  Illustrating  the  Invasion  of  Greece  by  Xerxes 168 

5.  Greece  in  the  Fifth  Century  b.c 272 

6.  March  of  the  Ten  Thousand  Greeks 398 

7.  Campaigns  and  Empire  of  Alexander  the  Great ,  .  .  442 

8.  Kingdoms  of  the  Successors  of  Alexander,  B.C.  300 456 


SKETCH    MAPS. 


PAGE 

1.  The  World  according  to  Homer 30 

2.  Magna  Graecia  and  Sicily 84 

3.  Marathon 155 

4.  Thermopylae 184 

5.  Artemisium 189 

6.  Athens  and  Salamis 202 

7.  Battle  of  Plataea,  B.C.  479 218 

8.  Athens  and  the  Long  Walls 247 

9.  Pylos 310 

10.  Siege  of  Syracuse   353 

1 1 .  Plan  of  the  Battle  of  Leuctra,  371  b.c 409 

X 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


General  View  of  Olympia :  A  Reconstruction   Frontispiece 

1 .  View  of  the  Attic  Plains,  with  a  Glimpse  of  the  Acropolis  of  Athens  4 

2.  The  Plain  of  Olympia 7 

3.  Combat  between  Achilles  and  Hector 15 

4.  Battle  between  Greeks  and  Amazons 18 

5.  The  So-called  "  Battle  by  the  Ships,"  between  the  Greeks  and  the 

Trojans 21 

6.  The  So-called  Treasure  of  Priam 22 

7.  Dr.  Schliemann's  Excavations  at  Hissarlik,  or  Troy , .  23 

8.  Tombs  of  Mycenae .  25 

The  World  according  to  Homer 30 

9.  Gallery  in  the  South  Wall  at  Tiryns 32 

10.  Forty-oared  Greek  Boat 34 

11.  Group  of  Gods  and  Goddesses 42 

12.  The  Carrying-off  of  Persephone  by  Hades  to  the  Underworld:  her 

Leave-taking  of  her  Mother  Demeter 45 

13.  The  Dodonean  Zeus 48 

14.  Greek  Runners 51 

15.  Poseidon  and  the  Isthmian  Games 52 

Magna  Grsecia  and  Sicily 84 

16.  Coin  of  Sybaris   85 

17.  Coin  of  Cyrene 86 

18.  Coin  of  Corinth 89 

19.  The  Acropolis  at  Athens   loi 

20.  Ruins  of  the  Great  Temple  of  Zeus  Olympius  at  Athens 117 

21.  The  Athenian  Tyrannicides,  Harmodius  and  Aristogeiton 118 

21  a.  The  Bema,  or  Orator's  Stand,  on  the  Pnyx  Hill  at  Athens 122 

22.  Greek  Warriors  preparing  for  Battle 127 

23.  Croesus  on  the  Pyre ,  131 

xi 


xii  ILLUSTRATIONS, 

NO.  PAGE 

24.  Tomb  of  Cyrus  the  Great  at  Pasargadae,  the  Old  Persian  Capital. . .  133 
Marathon 155 

25.  Hoplite,  or  Heavy-armed  Greek  Warrior 163 

Thermopylae 184 

Artemisium 189 

Athens  and  Salamis 202 

Battle  of  Plataea 218 

26.  Temple  of  Theseus  at  Athens 235 

27.  Temple  of  Nike  Apteros,  or  Wingless  Victory,  on  the  Acropolis  at 

Athens 236 

Athens  and  the  Long  Walls 247 

28.  Pericles 255 

29.  The  Caryatid  Porch  of  the  Erechtheum 264 

30.  Restoration  of  the  Acropolis  of  Athens 265 

31.  The  Mourning  Athena 288 

Pylos 310 

32.  Alcibiades 330 

Siege  of  Syracuse 353 

Plan  of  the  Battle  of  Leuctra 409 

2,1.   Coin  of  the  Arcadian  Confederacy 412 

34.  Coin  of  Thebes 418 

35.  Coin  of  Syracuse   423 

36.  Demosthenes    433 

37.  Coin  of  Philip  II.  of  Macedon 439 

38.  Alexander  the  Great 441 

39.  Darius  at  the  Battle  of  Issus 445 

40.  Coin  of  Alexander  the  Great 453 

41.  The  Dying  Gaul 461 

42.  Coin  of  Antiochus  III.  (the  Great) 464 

43.  Coin  of  Athens 469 

44.  Archaic  Masonry 471 

45.  Doric  Capital 472 

46.  Ionic  Capital 472 

47.  Corinthian  Capital 473 

48.  The  Parthenon 477 

49.  The  Acropolis  at  Athens 478 

50.  The  Theatre  of  Dionysus  at  Athens 481 

51.  Choragic  Monument  of  Lysicrates 482 

52.  The  Wrestlers   484 

53.  Perseus  slaying  the  Gorgon  Medusa 485 


ILL  US  TRA  TIONS.  xiii 


PAGE 


54.  Stele  of  Aristion 486 

55.  Pediment  of  the  Temple  at  ^gina  487 

56.  Throwing  the  Discus  or  Quoit 487 

57.  Athenian  Youth  in  Procession 488 

58.  Athena  Parthenos 489 

59.  The  Olympian  Zeus  by  Pheidias 490 

60.  Restored  Nike  or  Victory  of  Pseonius 491 

61.  Hermes  with  the  Infant  Dionysus 493 

62.  A  Restoration  of  the  Greek  Altar  of  Zeus  Soter  at  Pergamus 494 

63.  The  Laocoon  Group 495 

64.  Homer    , 502 

65.  Bacchic  Procession  506 

66.  ^schylus 508 

67.  Sophocles 510 

68.  Euripides 511 

69.  Herodotus    513 

70.  Thucydides 514 

71.  Socrates 529 

72.  Plato 530 

73.  Aristotle  ^ ,  531 

74.  Epicurus 534 

75.  Greek  School 542 

76.  Gymnastic  Exercises 543 

77.  Greek  Tragic  Figure 547 

78.  A  Banquet  Scene 549 


HISTORY    OF    GREECE. 

Part    First. 

HELLAS   BEFORE    THE  PERSIAN    WARS. 
(From  the  Earliest  Times  to  500  b.c.) 


CHAPTER    L 

THE    LAND    AND    THE    RACE. 

Hellas. — The  ancient  people  whom  we  call  Greeks  called 
themselves  Hellenes  and  their  land  Hellas.  But  this  term  "  Hellas  " 
as  used  by  the  ancieiit  Greeks  embraced  much  more  than  modern 
Greece.  •  "Wherever  were  Hellenes  there  was  Hellas."  Thus  the 
name  included  not  only  Greece  proper  and  the  islands  of  the  ad- 
joining seas,  but  also  the  Hellenic  cities  in  Asia  Minor,  in  Southern 
Italy,  and  in  Sicily,  besides  many  other  Grecian  settlements  scat- 
tered up  and  down  the  Mediterranean  and  along  the  shores  of 
the  Hellespont,  the  Propontis,  and  the  Euxine. 

Yet  Greece  proper  was  the  real  home  land  of  the  Hellenes,  the 
land  in  which  they  believed  themselves  to  be  indigenous,  and 
which  was  the  actual  centre  of  Greek  hfe  and  culture.  Con- 
sequently it  will  be  necessary  for  us  to  gain  at  least  some  slight 
knowledge  of  the  divisions  and  physical  features  of  this  country, 
before  passing  to  the  history  of  the  peoples  themselves. 

The  Divisions  of  Greece.  —  Long  arms  of  the  sea  divide  the 
Grecian  peninsula  into  three  parts,  called  Northern,  Central,  and 


,/;  :^?4^^  LAND  AND    THE   RACE. 

;So(itto-^'*^jijeecej  /J'H^'jsouthem  portion,  joined  to  the  mainland 
by  the  Isthmus 'of  Co'rinth  and  now  generally  known  as  the  Morea, 
was  called  by  the  ancients  the  Peloponnesus,  that  is,  "  the  Island 
of  Pelops,"  from  its  fabled  colonizer. 

Northern  Greece  included  the  ancient  districts  of  Thessaly  and 
Epirus.  Thessaly  consists  mainly  of  a  large  and  beautiful  valley, 
walled  in  on  all  sides  by  rugged  mountains.  This  land-locked 
basin  seems  to  have  once  formed  a  great  lake,  which  was  drained 
by  the  opening,  probably  through  the  agency  of  an  earthquake,  of 
a  deep  fissure  in  the  mountain  range  on  the  side  towards  the 
^gean.  k  portion  of  this  gorge  forms  what  was  known  as  the 
Vale  of  Tempe,  a  spot  celebrated  far  and  wide  for  the  mingled 
beauty  and  grandeur  'of  its  scenery.  This  cleft,  through  which 
the  waters  of  the  interior  plain  still  find  their  way  to  the  ^gean, 
affords  the  only  practicable  northern  pass  into  the  Thessalian 
valley  from  the  side  of  the  sea.  Thessaly  nourished  great  herds 
of  horses  in  its  luxuriant  meadows,  and  during  all  periods  of 
Greek  history  the  military  strength  of  the  ThessaHans  consisted 
mainly  in  their  splendid  cavalry.  The  land  was  rich  in  story  and 
song,  and  some  of  the  earliest  recollections  of  the  historic  Greeks 
respecting  the  exploits  of  their  forefathers  were  connected  with  the 
harbors,  mountains,  and  other  local  features  of  the  country.  From 
one  of  its  ancient  ports,  lolcos,  the  Argonauts  are  said  to  have 
sailed  in  search  of  the  Golden  Fleece. 

The  district  of  Epirus  stretched  along  the  Ionian  Sea  on  the 
west.  In  the  gloomy  recesses  of  its  forests  of  oak  was  situated  the 
renowned  Dodonean  oracle  of  Zeus.  The  inhabitants  of  this 
district,  though  undoubtedly  related  to  the  Greeks,  lagged  behind 
their  kinsmen  in  culture,  and  never  played  any  important  part  in 
Greek  history. 

The  most  important  divisions  of  Central  Greece  were  Acarnania, 
^tolia,  Phocis,  Boeotia,  Attica,  and  Megaris.  Of  these  districts 
Phocis  deserves  particular  mention,  chiefly  for  the  reason  that  within 
its  borders  was  Delphi,  the  renowned  seat  of  an  oracle  of  Apollo. 
This  was  the  common  religious  hearth  of  the  Hellenic  race. 


THE   D/ VISIONS    OF  GREECE.  3 

Boeotia  was  a  badly  drained  land,  overhung  by  a  fog-laden 
atmosphere,  which  it  is  thought  tended  to  make  the  inhabitants 
heavy  and  dull.  The  Boeotians  were  certainly  regarded  by  their 
neighbors  as  stupid  and  gross.  The  chief  city  of  the  district 
was  Thebes,  which  acted  an  important,  though  for  the  most  part 
neither  very  brilliant  nor  creditable  part,  in  the  drama  of  Greek 
life.  Yet  round  this  city  clustered  many  of  those  legends  of  the 
heroic  age  of  the  Greeks  which  came  to  form  the  basis  of  some  of 
the  masterpieces  of  the  dramatic  poets  of  later  times. 

Attica  was  the  region  which  formed  the  setting  of  the  brilliant 
city  of  Athens.  Its  soil,  in  striking  contrast  to  the  deep,  fat  soil 
of  Boeotia,  is  thin  and  poor,  while  the  air  is  singularly  clear  and 
transparent,  giving  to  all  objects,  such  as  hills  and  temples, 
remarkable  sharpness  of  outhne  and  clearness  of  feature.  The 
Attic  land,  as  we  shall  learn,  was  the  central  point  of  Grecian 
history. 

The  chief  districts  of  Southern  Greece  were  Corinthia,  Arcadia, 
Achaia,  Argolis,  Laconia,  Messenia,  and  Elis. 

The  main  part  of  Corinthia  formed  the  Isthmus  uniting  the 
Peloponnesus  to  continental  Greece.  Its  chief  city  was  Corinth, 
the  gateway  of  the  peninsula. 

Arcadia,  sometimes  called  "  the  Switzerland  of  the  Pelopon- 
nesus," formed  the  heart  of  the  peninsula.  This  region  consists 
of  broken  uplands  shut  in  from  the  surrounding  coast-plains  by 
irregular  mountain  walls.  The  inhabitants  of  this  region,  because 
thus  isolated,  were,  in  the  general  intellectual  movement  of  the 
Greek  race,  left  far  behind  the  dwellers  in  the  more  accessible  and 
favored  portions  of  Greece.  It  is  the  rough  country-hke  manners 
of  the  Arcadians  that  has  given  the  term  "  Arcadian  "  its  meaning 
of  pastoral  artlessness  and  rusticity. 

Achaia  was  a  strip  of  land  lying  upon  the  Corinthian  Gulf.  Its 
cities  did  not  take  any  active  part  in  the  affairs  of  Greece  until 
the  most  brilliant  period  of  her  history  was  past.  They  then 
formed  the  heart  of  an  important  confederacy  known  as  the 
Achaean  league. 


THE   MOUNT  AIMS   OF  GREECE.  5 

Argolis  formed  a  tongue  of  land  jutting  out  into  tlie  ^gean. 
This  region  is  noted  as  the  home  of  an  early  prehistoric  culture, 
and  holds  to-day  the  remains  of  cities  —  Tiryns  and  Mycenae  — 
the  kings  of  which  built  great  palaces,  possessed  vast  treasures  in 
gold  and  silver,  and  held  wide  sway  long  before  Athens  had  made 
for  herself  a  place  in  history.  Almost  every  nook  and  corner  of 
the  land  was  alive  with  legends  of  the  heroes  of  the  Greek  fore- 
time. The  chief  city  of  the  region  during  the  historic  period  was 
Argos. 

Laconia,  or  Lacedaemon,  embraced  a  considerable  part  of  the 
southern  portion  of  the  Peloponnesus.  A  prominent  feature  of 
the  physical  geography  of  this  region  is  a  deep  river  valley,  —  the 
valley  of  the  Eurotas,  —  from  whence  arose  the  descriptive  name, 
"  Hollow  Lacedaemon."  This  district  was  ruled  by  the  city  of 
Sparta,  the  great  rival  of  Athens. 

Messenia  was  a  rich  and  fruitful  region  lying  to  the  west  of 
Laconia.  It  nourished  a  vigorous  race,  who  in  early  times  carried 
on  a  stubborn  struggle  with  the  Spartans,  by  whom  they  were 
finally  overpowered. 

EHs,  a  district  on  the  western  side  of  the  Peloponnesus,  is 
chiefly  noted  as  the  consecrated  land  which  held  Olympia,  the 
great  assembling  place  of  the  Greeks  on  the  occasion  of  the  cele- 
bration of  the  most  famous  of  their  national  festivals  —  the  so- 
called  Olympian  games. 

The  Mountains  of  Greece. — The  Olympian  and  Cambunian 
mountains  form  a  lofty  wall  along  a  considerable  reach  of  the 
northern  frontier  of  Greece,  shutting  out  at  once  the  cold  winds 
and  hostile  races  of  the  north.  Branching  off  at  right  angles 
to  the  Cambunian  mountains,  is  the  Pindus  range,  which  runs 
between  Thessaly  and  Epirus,  and  then  continues  on  through 
Central  Greece.  This  mountain  system  corresponds  in  a  general 
way  to  that  of  Italy.  Thus  the  Cambunian  and  Olympian  ranges 
correspond  to  the  Alps,  which  guard  the  northern  frontier  of 
the  Italian  peninsula,  while  the  Pindus  range  answers  to  the 
Apennines. 


6  THE  LAND  AND    THE  RACE. 

The  culminating  point  of  the  Olympian  ridge  is  Mount  Olympus, 
the  most  celebrated  mountain  of  Greece.  It  is  only  9750  feet  in 
height,  but  the  ancient  Greeks  thought  it  the  highest  mountain  in 
the  world,  and  believed  that  its  cloudy  summit  was  the  assembling 
place  of  the  gods. 

South  of  Mount  Olympus,  close  by  the  sea,  are  Ossa  and 
Pelion,  celebrated  in  fable  as  the  mountains  which  the  giants,  in 
their  war  against  the  gods,  piled  one  upon  the  other  in  order  to 
scale  Olympus. 

Mounts  Parnassus,  Helicon,  and  Cithaeron  form  in  Central  Greece 
a  continuation  of  the  Pindus  range.  The  first  two  were  believed 
to  be  favorite  haunts  of  the  Muses,  and  on  the  slopes  of  the  last, 
Dionysus  and  his  attendant  satyrs  are  said  to  have  held  their 
revels.  A  deep  cleft  in  Parnassus  was  the  site  of  the  celebrated 
Delphian  oracle  of  Apollo.  Parnassus  was  the  Mount  Ararat  of 
Grecian  legend,  for  upon  this  mountain  it  was  that  Deucalion,  the 
Greek  Noah,  and  his  wife  Pyrrha,  whom  alone  the  great  flood 
sent  by  Zeus  had  spared,  issued  from  the  ark,  in  which  they  had 
been  preserved,  to  repeople  the  land. 

In  Attica,  near  Athens,  are  Hymettus,  celebrated  for  its  honey ; 
Pentelicus,  renowned  for  its  marbles ;  and  Parnes,  noted  for  its 
wines. 

The  Peloponnesus  is  rugged  with  mountains  which  radiate  in 
all  directions  from  the  central  region  of  Arcadia.  Among  them 
the  attention  of  the  historian  is  called  particularly  to  the  Taygetus 
range,  which  forms  a  rampart  on  the  west  to  Hollow  Lacedaemon. 
It  reaches  a  height  of  about  8000  feet. 

The  Rivers  and  Lakes  of  the  Land.  —  Greece  has  no  rivers 
large  enough  to  be  of  service  to  commerce.  Most  of  the  streams 
are  scarcely  more  than  winter  torrents.  A  few,  however,  bear 
throughout  the  year  a  considerable  volume  of  water  to  the  sea. 
Among  the  most  important  streams  may  be  named  the  Peneus, 
which  drains  the  Thessalian  plain  through  the  gorge  between  Ossa 
and  Olympus ;  the  Achelous,  the  largest  river  in  Greece,  which, 
rising  in  Epirus,  runs  southward,  separating  in  its  lower  course 


GENERAL 

REFERENCE  MAP 

OF 

ANCIENT  GREECE 


THE   RIVERS  AND   LAKES   OF   THE   LAND.  7 

Acarnania  from  ^tolia ;  the  Alpheus  in  Elis,  on  the  banks  of 
which  the  Olympian  games  were  celebrated  ;  and  the  Eurotas, 
which  threads  the  central  valley  of  Laconia.  The  Ilissus  and 
Cephisus  are  little  streams  of  Attica  which  owe  their  renown 
chiefly  to  the  poets.  In  midsmiimer  the  Ilissus  almost  wholly 
disappears. 

The  following  rivers  deserve  mention,  not  because  of  their  size 
or  their  direct  connection  with  the  history  of  the  country,  but  for 


Fig.  2.     THE    PLAIN  OF  OLYMPIA.     (The  Valley  of  the  Alpheus  in  Ells,  where  were  held  the 
celebrated  Olympian  games.     From   Boetticher's  Olympia.) 


the  reason  of  the  prominent  place  they  hold  in  Greek  literature. 
The  Acheron  is  a  river  of  Epirus,  which  flows  through  a  deep 
gloomy  gorge,  and  for  this  reason  was  fabled  by  the  Greeks  to 
form  the  entrance  to  Hades,  into  which  it  was  believed  to  fall. 
The  Cocytus,  "  the  stream  of  wailing,"  is  also  a  river  of  Epirus, 
which  the  poets  Hkewise  transferred  to  the  under-world  and  made 
^ne  of  the  rivers  of  the  infernal  regions.  The  Styx  is  a  small 
,  stream  of  Arcadia,  which  leaps  a  lofty  precipice  in  its  course,  and 
\  whose  waters  were  thought  by  the  ancient  Greeks  to  be  deadly 


8  THE  LAND  AND    THE   RACE. 

poisonous.  It,  like  the  Acheron  and  the  Cocytus,  was  made  one 
of  the  rivers  of  the  lower  world.  It  was  regarded  with  such  awe 
and  reverence  that  the  gods  were  believed  to  swear  by  its  "  baneful 
water,"  and  to  hold  their  word  as  specially  inviolable  when  guarded 
by  such  a  sanction. 

The  lively  imagination  of  the  Greeks  led  them  to  personify 
under  various  forms  the  streams  of  their  land.  This  gave  rise  to 
a  crowd  of  beautiful  stories,  which  told  of  the  loves  and  the 
beneficence  of  the  river  gods.  The  favorite  form  under  which  a 
river  with  a  swift  current  was  conceived  was  that  of  a  man-headed 
bull,  —  a  figure  obviously  suggested  by  its  destructive  energy  in 
seasons  of  flood,  —  which  some  hero  combats  and  overcomes. 

The  lakes  of  Greece  are  scarcely  more  than  stagnant  pools,  the 
back  water  of  spring  freshets.^  In  this  respect,  Greece,  though  a 
mountainous  country,  presents  a  striking  contrast  to  Switzerland, 
whose  numerous  and  deep  lakes  form  one  of  the  most  attractive 
features  of  Swiss  scenery.  This  contrast  results  from  difference  in 
geological  formation.  The  hills  of  Greece  are  composed  largely 
of  limestone,  in  which  the  waters  easily  wear  subterranean  pas- 
sages, and  thereby  escape  from  the  valleys.  Indeed,  one  peculiar 
feature  of  the  rivers  of  Greece  is  the  underground  channels  into 
which  they  often  disappear  to  come  to  the  hght  again  at  a  lower 
point  in  their  courses. 

Islands  about  Greece. — Very  much  of  the  history  of  Greece  is 
intertwined  with  the  islands  that  lie  about  the  mainland.  On  the 
east,  in  the  ^gean  Sea,  are  the  Cyclades,  so  called  because  they 
form  an  irregular  circle  round  the  sacred  island  of  Delos,  where 
was  a  very  celebrated  shrine  of  Apollo.  Between  the  Cyclades 
and  Asia  Minor  lie  the  Sporades,  which  islands,  as  the  name  im- 
plies, are  sown  irregularly  over  that  portion  of  the  .-Egean.  They 
are  simply  the  peaks  of  submerged  mountain  ranges,  which  may 


1  One  of  the  largest  of  Greek  lakes  is  Lake  Copias  in  Boeotia.  Its  name  is 
connected  with  some  important  engineering  works  of  the  early  inhabitants  of  the 
district. 


CLIMATE   AND  PRODUCTIONS.  9 

be  regarded  as  a  continuation  beneath  the  sea  of  the  mountains  of 
Central  Greece. 

Just  off  the  coast  of  Attica  is  a  large  island  called  by  the  ancients 
Euboea,  but  known  to  us  as  Negropont.  Close  to  the  Asian 
shores  are  the  large  islands  of  Lemnos,  Lesbos,  Chios,  Samos,  and 
Rhodes.  Lesbos  was  the  early  hearth  of  music  and  song.  Chios 
was  widely  known  as  the  home  of  the  alleged  descendants  of 
Homer,  called  the  Homeridse.  Samos  was  the  birthplace  of 
some  of  the  most  distinguished  artists  and  philosophers  that  the 
Greek  race  produced.  Rhodes  was  noted  in  the  later  period  of 
Greek  history  for  its  schools  of  oratory  and  sculpture,  and  its  com- 
mercial activity. 

In  the  Mediterranean,  midway  between  Greece  and  Egypt,  is 
the  large  island  of  Crete,  noted  in  legend  for  its  Labyrinth  and  its 
legislator  Minos.  To  the  west  of  Greece  lie  the  Ionian  Islands, 
the  largest  of  which  was  called  Corey ra,  now  Corfu.  The  rugged 
island  of  Ithaca  was  the  birthplace  of  Odysseus  (Ulysses),  the 
hero  of  the  Odyssey.  Cythera,  just  south  of  the  Peloponnesus,  was 
sacred  to  Aphrodite,  as  it  was  here  fable  said  that  she  rose  from 
the  sea- foam. 

From  the  waters  of  the  Saronic  Gulf,  within  sight  of  the  Attic 
shore,  rises  the  island  of  ^gina,  the  inhabitants  of  which  were 
long  the  rivals  of  the  Athenians.  In  the  same  gulf,  hugging  the 
Attic  coast,  is  Salamis,  whose  name  commemorates  a  great  sea- 
fight  between  the  Greeks  and  the  Persians. 

Climate  and  Productions. — There  is  a  great  variety  in  the 
climate  of  Greece.  In  the  north  and  upon  the  uplands  the 
climate  is  temperate,  in  the  south  semi-tropical.  The  slopes  of 
the  mountains  in  Northern  Greece  and  in  Arcadia  support  forests 
of  beech,  oak,  and  pine ;  while  the  southern  districts  of  the 
Peloponnesus  nourish  the  date-palm,  the  citron,  and  the  orange. 
Attica,  midway  between  the  north  and  the  south,  is  the  home  of 
the  olive  and  the  fig.  The  vine  grows  luxuriantly  in  almost  every 
part  of  the  land.  Wheat,  barley,  wine,  and  oil  are  to-day,  as  they 
were  in  ancient  times,  the  chief  products  of  the  country ;  but  flax, 


10  THE  LAND  AND    THE   RACE. 

honey,  and  the  products  of  herds  of  cattle  and  sheep  have  always 
formed  a  considerable  part  of  the  economic  wealth  of  the  land. 

The  hills  of  Greece  supplied  many  of  the  useful  metals.  The 
ranges  of  the  Taygetus  yielded  iron,  in  which  the  inhabitants  of 
Laconia  became  skilful  workers.  Euboea  and  Cyprus  furnished 
copper,  which  created  a  great  industry,  having  its  centre  in  the 
former  island.  The  hills  of  southern  Attica  contained  silver 
mines,  which  helped  the  Athenians  to  build  their  earliest  navy. 
Mountains  near  Athens  and  the  hills  of  the  island  of  Paros  afforded 
beautiful  marbles,  which  made  possible  the  creation  of  such 
splendid  temples  as  the  Parthenon,  and  encouraged  the  sculptor 
to  the  patient  exercise  of  all  his  skill.  Thrace  and  certain  districts 
of  Asia  Minor,  which  the  Greeks  either  possessed  or  traded  with, 
yielded  an  abundant  supply  of  gold,  though  the  precious  metal 
is  not  found  in  Greece  proper. 

Influence  of  the  Land  upon  the  People. — The  physical  geog- 
raphy of  a  country  has  much  to  do  with  moulding  the  character 
and  shaping  the  history  of  its  people.  Mountains,  isolating 
neighboring  communities  and  shutting  out  conquering  races, 
foster  the  spirit  of  local  patriotism  and  preserve  freedom ;  the 
sea,  inviting  abroad  and  rendering  intercourse  with  distant  coun- 
tries easy,  awakens  the  spirit  of  adventure,  and  develops  commer- 
cial enterprise. 

Now,  Greece  is  at  once  a  mountainous  and  a  maritime  country. 
Mountain  walls  fence  it  off  into  a  great  number  of  isolated  dis- 
tricts, and  this  is  one  reason  —  though  not  the  main  reason,  as  we 
shall  learn  —  why  the  Greeks  formed  so  many  small  independent 
states,  and  never  could  be  brought  to  feel  or  to  act  as  a  single 
nation.  The  earlier  history  of  the  cantons  of  Switzerland  affords 
a  somewhat  similar  illustration  of  the  influence  of  the  physical 
features  of  a  country  upon  the  political  fortunes  of  its  inhabitants. 

The  Grecian  peninsula  is,  moreover,  by  deep  arms  and  bays  of 
the  sea,  converted  into  what  is  in  effect  an  archipelago.  No  spot  in 
Greece  is  forty  miles  from  the  sea.  Hence  its  people  were  early 
tempted  to  a  sea-faring  life  —  tempted  to  follow  what  Homer  calls 


THE  PELASGIANS.  11 

the  "  wet  paths  "  of  Ocean,  to  see  whither  they  might  lead.  The 
shores  of  the  Mediterranean  and  the  Euxine  were  dotted  with 
Hellenic  colonies.  Intercourse  with  the  old  civilizations  of  Egypt 
and  Phoenicia  stirred  the  naturally  quick  and  versatile  Greek 
intellect  to  early  and  vigorous  thought.  The  islands  strewn  with 
seeming  carelessness  through  the  ^gean  Sea  were  "stepping- 
stones,"  which  invited  intercourse  between  the  settlers  of  Greece 
and  the  inhabitants  of  the  delightful  coast  countries  of  Asia  Minor 
and  thus  blended  the  life  and  history  of  the  opposite  shores. 
How  much  the  sea  did  in  developing  enterprise  and  intelligence 
in  the  cities  of  the  maritime  districts  of  Greece  is  shown  by  the 
contrast  which  the  advancing  culture  of  these  regions  presented 
to  the  lagging  civilization  of  the  peoples  of  the  interior  districts ; 
as,  for  instance,  those  of  Arcadia. 

Again,  the  beauty  of  Grecian  scenery  inspired  many  of  the 
most  striking  passages  of  the  Greek  poets ;  and  it  is  thought  that 
the  exhilarating  atmosphere  and  brilliant  skies  of  Attica  were  not 
unrelated  to  the  lofty  achievements  of  the  Athenian  intellect. 
Indeed,  we  may  almost  assert  that  the  wonderful  culture  of  Greece 
was  the  product  of  a  land  of  incomparable  and  varied  beauties 
acting  upon  a  people  singularly  sensitive  to  the  influences  of 
nature. 

The  Pelasgians.  —  The  historic  inhabitants  of  the  land  we  have 
described  were  called  by  the  Romans  Greeks ;  but,  as  we  have 
already  learned,  they  called  themselves  Hellenes,  from  their  fabled 
ancestor  Hellen. 

But  the  Hellenes,  according  to  their  own  account,  were  not  the 
original  inhabitants  of  the  country.  They  were  preceded  by  a 
people  whom  they  called  Pelasgians.  Who  this  folk  may  have 
been,  or  what  was  their  relation  to  the  later  historic  Greeks,  is  a 
matter  of  debate.  Some  think  they  were  the  Aryan  pioneers  in 
this  part  of  Europe,  and  stood  in  some  such  relation  to  the 
Greeks  as  the  Celts  in  Western  Europe  sustained  to  the  Teutons. 
Others  regard  them  as  being  simply  the  prehistoric  ancestors  of 
the  Hellenes,  or  of  a  part  of  the  Hellenes,  just  as  the  Angles  and 


12  THE   LAND   AND    THE   RACE. 

Saxons  were  the  progenitors  of  the  EngHsh  of  to-day.  Still  others 
think  that  the  Pelasgians  and  Hellenes  were  kindred  tribes,  but 
that  the  Hellenes,  possessing  superior  qualities,  gradually  acquired 
ascendency  over  the  Pelasgians,  and  finally  absorbed  them.^ 

The  Pelasgians,  whoever  they  may  have  been,  evidently  were  a 
people  somewhat  advanced  beyond  the  savage  state.  They  culti- 
vated the  ground,  and  protected  their  cities  with  walls.  Their 
chief  deity  was  the  Dodonean  Zeus,  so  called  from  his  sanctuary 
of  Dodona,  in  Epirus.  He  was  essentially  the  same  divinity  as 
the  Olympian  Zeus  of  the  later  Greeks. 

The  Hellenes.  —  The  Hellenes,  a  race  of  Aryan  stock,  were  the 
people  who  have  given  Greece  her  great  place  in  history.  Though 
separated  into  numerous,  independent,  self-governing  communi- 
ties, still  the  bonds  of  race,  language,  and  religion  tended  to  draw 
them  together  into  a  sort  of  association  or  fraternal  union. 
They  always  regarded  themselves  as  members  of  a  single  family ; 
all  were  descended,  according  to  their  fabled  genealogy,  from  the 
common  progenitor  Hellen.^  All  non-Hellenic  peoples  they  called 
Barbarians.  At  first  this  term  meant  scarcely  more  than  "  unin- 
telligible folk,"  carrying  with  it  no  intimation  of  lack  of  culture  in 
the  people  to  whom  it  was  appHed.  But  later,  when  the  Greeks 
had  become  more  keenly  alive  to  the  fact  that  they  were  more 
beautiful  in  body  as  well  as  more  alert  in  mind  than  their  neigh- 
bors, then  the  word  came  to  express  not  simply  aversion  to  a 
foreign  tongue,  but  contempt  founded  upon  inferiority. 

The  Hellenes  were  divided  into  four  famiHes  or  tribes ;  namely, 
the  Achseans,  the  lonians,  the  Dorians,  and  the  yEolians. 

1  Perhaps  the  whole  matter  might  be  stated  in  this  way :  The  Greeks  at  differ- 
ent times  bore  different  names;  at  first  they  were  known  as  Pelasgians,  after- 
wards as  Achaean s,  and  still  later  as  Hellenes.  See  Abbott,  History  of  Greece, 
vol.  i.  p.  29. 

2  According  to  the  mythical  genealogy  of  the  Greeks,  Hellen,  son  of  Deucalion, 
the  Grecian  Noah,  had  three  sons,  ^olus,  Dorus,  and  Xuthus.  ^olus  and  Dorus 
were  the  ancestors  respectively  of  the  ^olians  and  Dorians.  Xuthus  had  two 
sons.  Ion  and  Achaeus;  the  first  the  progenitor  of  the  lonians,  and  the  second  of 
the  Achasans. 


THE   HE  r J.  E IVES.  13 

The  Achseans  are  represented  by  the  Greek  legends  as  being 
the  predominant  race  in  the  Peloponnesus  during  the  Heroic  Age. 
They  then  overshadowed  to  such  a  degree  all  the  other  tribes,  as 
to  cause  their  name  to  be  frequently  used  for  the  Greeks  in 
general. 

The  lonians  were  a  many-sided,  enterprising  people,  singularly 
open  to  outside  influences.  These  qualities  we  may  regard  as  the 
result  of  their  maritime  life,  for,  speaking  broadly,  the  lonians 
were  given  to  commerce  and  trade,  and  lived  much  upon  the  sea. 
They  developed  every  part  of  their  nature,  and  attained  unsur- 
passed excellence  in  art,  literature,  and  philosophy.  The  most 
noted  Ionian  city  was  Athens,  whose  story  is  a  large  part  of  the 
history  of  Hellas. 

The  Dorians,  in  their  typical  communities,  present  themselves 
to  us  as  a  conservative,  practical,  and  unimaginative  race.  Their 
speech  and  their  art  were  both  alike  without  ornament.  They 
developed  the  body  rather  than  the  mind.  Their  education  was 
almost  wholly  gymnastic  and  military.  The  most  important  city 
founded  by  them  was  Sparta,  the  rival  of  Athens. 

In  the  different  aptitudes  and  contrasted  tendencies  of  these 
two  great  Hellenic  families,  lay,  in  the  words  of  the  historian 
Ranke,  *'  the  fate  of  Greece."  They  divided  Hellas  into  two 
rival  parties,  which,  through  their  jealousies  and  contentions, 
finally  brought  to  utter  ruin  all  the  political  hopes  and  promises 
of  the  Hellenic  race. 

The  Cohans  formed  a  rather  ill-defined  division.  In  historic 
times  the  name  is  often  made  to  include  all  Hellenes  not  enu- 
merated as  lonians  or  Dorians. 

When,  about  the  beginning  of  the  eighth  century  B.C.,  the  mists 
of  antiquity  first  clear  away  from  Greece,  we  discover  the  several 
famihes  of  the  Hellenic  race  in  possession  of  Greece  proper,  of 
the  islands  of  the  ^gean,  and  of  the  western  coasts  of  Asia  Minor. 
Respecting  their  migrations  and  dwelling-places  previous  to  their 
settlement  in  these  lands,  we  have  no  certain  knowledge.  We 
do  know,  however,  through  the  testimony  of  language,  that  they 


14  THE   LAND   AND    THE   RACE. 

belonged,  as  has  already  been  said,  to  the  great  Aryan  family,  and 
that  they  were  relatively  close  kin  to  the  Italian  peoples. 

The  Greek  Genius.  —  We  shall  learn  in  the  following  chapter 
that  the  Greeks  without  doubt  received  many  of  the  primary  ele- 
ments of  their  culture  from  the  Orient.  But  we  must  not  allow 
this  circumstance  to  render  us  blind  to  the  fact  that  the  chief  ele- 
ment after  all  in  the  wonderful  product  which  we  call  Greek  civili- 
zation was  the  Greek  genius  itself.  For  it  is  with  races  as  with 
individuals.  Men  of  an  extraordinary  personality  are  not  the 
product  of  education  or  of  circumstances.  They  are  born,  not 
made.  It  is  the  mental  aptitudes  of  the  Hellenes,  that  original, 
versatile,  imaginative  genius,  that  love  of  the  beautiful  and  sense 
of  proportion,  that  sensitiveness  to  the  influences  of  nature  which 
we  have  already  mentioned  as  characterizing  the  Ionian  Greeks 
above  all  others,  —  it  is  these  rare  mental  qualities,  gained  we 
know  not  how,  which  the  Greeks  possessed  when  they  entered  the 
lands  they  occupied  in  historic  times,  that  afford  the  only  satis- 
factory explanation  of  their  wonderful  achievements  in  art,  in  lit- 
erature, and  in  philosophy.  Without  the  quickening  power  of  the 
Greek  genius,  the  germs  of  culture  transmitted  to  the  West  from 
the  East  would  have  lain  dormant,  or  have  developed  into  less 
perfect  and  less  admirable  forms.  It  was  a  case  of  good  seed 
faUing  into  good  ground  —  and  it  brought  forth  a  hundred-fold. 

References. — Curtius,  History  of  Greece  (from  the  German),  vol.  i.  pp. 
9-46.  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  ii.  pp.  141-163; 
(twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  II.  pp.  211-236;  on  the  geography  of  Greece. 
Tozer,  Primer  of  Classical  Geography.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece.,  vol.  i. 
pp.  1-57.  Mahaffy,  Rambles  and  Studies  in  Greece  ;  contains,  mingled  with 
discourses  on  various  things,  some  charming  descriptions  of  Greek  scenery. 
Butcher,  So/ue  Aspects  of  the  Greek  Genius  (from  the  German);  for  the 
mature  student. 

Note.  —  In  the  lists  of  references  to  parallel  readings  given  in  connection 
with  the  chapters  throughout  the  book,  mention  will  be  made  only  of  books 
easily  accessible  and  in  the  English  language.  Somewhat  fuller  lists  of  works, 
dealing  with  special  periods  and  subjects  of  Greek  history,  will  be  found  in 
the  bibliography  at  the  end  of  the  book. 


CHARACTER   OF   THE   LEGENDS.  IS 


Fig.  3.     COMBAT    BETWEEN    ACHILLES    AND    HECTOR.     (From  a  vase.) 

CHAPTER    II. 

PREHISTORIC     HELLAS     ACCORDING    TO     GREEK     ACCOUNTS. 

Character  of  the  Legends.  —  The  real  history  of  the  Greeks 
does  not  begin  before  the  eighth  century  B.C.  All  that  lies  back 
of  that  date  is  an  inseparable  mixture  of  myth,  legend,  and  fact. 
Yet  this  shadowy  period  forms  the  background  of  Grecian  history, 
and  we  cannot  understand  the  Greeks  of  historic  times  without 
some  knowledge,  at  least,  of  what  they  believed  their  ancestors 
had  done  and  experienced,  for  these  beliefs  profoundly  influenced 
their  own  conduct.  What  has  been  said  of  the  war  against  Troy, 
namely,  "  If  not  itself  a  fact,  the  Trojan  War  became  the  cause  of 
innumerable  facts,"  ^  is  true  of  the  whole  body  of  Greek  legends. 
These  tales  were  recited  by  the  historian,  dramatized  by  the  tragic 
poet,  cut  in  marble  by  the  sculptor,  and  depicted  by  the  painter 
on  the  walls  of  portico  and  temple.  They  thus  constituted  a  very 
vital  part  of  the  education  of  every  Greek,  and  aflbrded  the  inspi- 
ration of  many  a  great  and  worthy  deed. 

Therefore,  as  a  sort  of  prelude  to  the  story  we  have  to  tell,  we 
shall  repeat  some  of  the  legends  of  the  Greeks  touching  the 
beginnings  of  civilization  in  Hellas,  and  respecting  the  labors  and 
achievements  of  some  of  their  greatest  national  heroes.  But  it 
must  be  carefully  borne  in  mind  that  these  legends  are  not  history. 

1  Gardner,  New  Chapters  in  Greek  History,  p.  6. 


16  PREfirSTORIC  HELLAS. 

Where,  however,  there  seems  to  be  sufficient  ground  to  justify  an 
opinion,  we  shall  suggest  what  may  be  the  grain  of  truth  in  any 
particular  legend,  or  what  part  of  it  may  be  a  diip  though  con- 
fused remembrance  of  actual  events. 

Oriental  Immigrants.  —  The  legends  of  the  Greeks  represent 
the  early  growth  of  civilization  among  them  as  having  been  pro- 
moted by  the  settlement  in  Greece  of  Oriental  immigrants,  who 
brought  with  them  the  arts  and  culture  of  the  different  countries 
of  the  East. 

Thus  from  Egypt,  legend  affirms,  came  Cecrops,  bringing  with 
him  the  arts,  learning,  and  priestly  wisdom  of  the  Nile  valley.  He 
is  represented  as  the  builder  of  Cecropia,  which  became  afterwards 
the  citadel  of  the  illustrious  city  of  Athens.  From  the  same  land 
Danaus  is  also  said  to  have  come  with  his  fifty  daughters,  and  to 
have  built  the  citadel  of  Argos.  From  Phoenicia  Cadmus  brought 
the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  and  founded  the  city  of  Thebes. 
The  Phrygian  Pelops,  the  progenitor  of  the  renowned  heroes 
Agamemnon  and  Menelaus,  settled  in  the  southern  peninsula, 
which  was  called  after  him  Peloponnesus  (the  Island  of  Pelops). 

The  nucleus  of  fact  in  all  these  legends  is  probably  this,  —  that 
the  European  Greeks  received  the  primary  elements  of  their 
culture  from  the  East,  and  this  in  two  ways :  first,  directly, 
through  the  setdement  in  Greece  in  prehistoric  times  of  Semitic 
races,  particularly  the  Phoenicians ;  and  secondly,  indirectly, 
through  the  Oriental  Greeks  who,  settled  on  the  shores  of  Asia 
Minor,  in  Crete  and  Cyprus,  and  possibly  in  Lower  Egypt,  came 
in  contact  with  peoples  of  Semitic  or  semi-Semitic  race,  ab- 
sorbed certain  elements  of  their  civilization,  and  transmitted  these 
germs  of  culture  to  their  kinsmen  in  European  Greece. 

That  the  Hellenes  did  in  this  manner  receive  at  least  many  of 
the  rudiments  of  their  civilization  does  not  admit  of  doubt.  For 
at  the  very  time  that  the  Ionian  Greeks  were  spreading  them- 
selves over  the  western  coast  of  Asia  Minor  and  the  islands  of  the 
Archipelago,  the  Phoenicians  were  establishing  their  colonies  in 
Crete,  Rhodes,  and  other  islands  of  the  ^^gean,  and  possibly  even 


THE   HEROES:    HERACLES,    THESEUS,  AND   MINOS.      17 

in  Greece  itself,  and  carrying  with  them  the  arts  and  culture  of 
Egypt  and  Babylonia.  At  the  same  time  the  Hittites,  also,  hav- 
ing extended  their  power  throughout  Asia  Minor,  were  spreading 
the  civilization  of  the  Euphrates  to  the  shores  of  the  ^gean. 

The  Heroes :  Heracles,  Theseus,  and  Minos.  —  Standing  often 
in  close  relation  to  the  early  foreign  settlers  of  whom  we  have  just 
spoken,  was  a  great  crowd  of  later  heroes,  many  of  whom  traced 
their  lineage  from  these  illustrious  foreigners,  and  yet  in  general 
are  represented  by  the  legends  as  thoroughly  Greek  in  temper, 
speech,  and  act,  in  all  intellectual  and  moral  qualities. 

Many  of  these  personages  acquired  national  renown,  and  be- 
came the  revered  heroes  of  the  whole  Greek  race.  These  heroes 
were,  doubtless,  in  some  cases  historical  persons,  but  so  much  of 
myth  and  fable  has  gathered  about  their  names  that  it  is  quite 
impossible  to  separate  that  which  is  really  historical  from  what 
is  purely  fabulous.  Among  the  most  noted  of  these  heroes  are 
Heracles,  Theseus,  and  Minos.  Respecting  each  of  these  we  will 
say  a  word. 

Heracles,  who  is  made  to  spring  from  the  royal  line  estabhshed 
at  Argos  by  Danaus  (p.  i6),  was  the  greatest  of  the  national 
heroes  of  the  Greeks.  He  is  represented  as  performing,  besides 
various  other  exploits,  twelve  superhuman  labors,  —  among  which 
were  the  slaying  of  the  Nemean  lion,  the  destruction  of  the  Ler- 
naean  hydra,  the  cleansing  of  the  stables  of  Augeas,  and  the  bring- 
ing of  Cerberus  from  the  infernal  regions,  —  and  as  being  at  last 
translated  from  a  blazing  pyre  to  a  place  among  the  immortal  gods. 

The  original  of  the  Greek  Heracles  was  the  Syrian  sun-god 
Melcarth,  whose  worship  was  introduced  into  Greece  by  the 
Phoenician  traders.  The  Greek  imagination  gradually  transformed 
and  idealized  this  solar  divinity  of  the  East,  until  he  became  at 
last  the  personification  and  ideal  type  of  the  lofty  moral  qualities 
of  heroism,  self-sacrifice,  and  endurance,  as  well  as  the  symbol  of 
the  bravery,  sufferings,  and  achievements  of  the  pioneers  of  Greek 
civilization. 

Theseus,  a  descendant  of  Cecrops,  was  the  favorite  hero  of  the 


IS 


PREHISTORIC  HE  HAS. 


Athenians,  being  one  of  their  legendary  kings.  Among  his  great 
works  were  the  clearing  of  the  Isthmian  highways  of  robbers,  the 
slaying  of  the  Minotaur.  —  a  monster  which  Minos,  king  of  Crete, 
kept  in  a  labyrinth,  and  fed  upon  youths  and  maidens  sent  from 
Atliens  as  a  forced  tribute,  —  the  defeat  of  the  Amazons,  and  the 
consolidation  of  the  twelve  boroughs  or  cantons  of  Attica  into  a 
single  state. 

The  legend  of  Theseus  doubtless  contains  a  substantial  kernel 
of  history.  The  consolidation  of  Attica  was  certainly  an  historical 
event,  while  the  slaying  of  the  Minotaur  may  be  taken  to  sym- 


Fig.  4.     BATTLE   BETWEEN   GREEKS   AND    AMAZONS.      (From  a  sarcophagus.) 


bolize  the  freeing  of  the  Athenians  from  a  tribute  paid  to  the 
Phoenicians  of  Crete,  whose  custom  of  sacrificing  children  to 
Moloch  probably  lent  to  the  myth  its  peculiar  form. 

Minos,  who  has  already  been  mentioned  as  the  king  of  Crete, 
was  one  of  the  great  tribal  heroes  of  the  Dorians.  Legend  makes 
him  a  legislator  of  divine  wisdom,  the  suppressor  of  piracy  in  the 
Grecian  seas,  and  the  founder  of  the  first  great  maritime  state  of 
Hellas. 

The  Argonautic  Expedition.  —  Besides  the  labors  and  exploits 
of  single  heroes,  such  as  we  have  been  naming,  the  legends  of  the 
Greeks  tell  of  three  especially  memorable  enterprises  which  were 


THE   SEVEN  AGAINST    THEBES.  19 

conducted  by  bands  of  heroes.  These  were  the  Argonaiitic  Ex- 
pedition, the  Seven  against  Thebes,  and  the  Siege  of  Troy. 

The  tale  of  the  Argonauts  is  told  with  many  variations  in  the 
legends  of  the  Greeks.  Jason,  a  prince  of  Thessaly,  with  fifty 
companion  heroes,  among  whom  were  Heracles,  Theseus,  and 
Orpheus,  the  latter  a  musician  of  superhuman  skill,  the  music  of 
whose  lyre  moved  trees  and  stones,  set  sail  in  "  a  fifty-oared 
galley,"  called  the  Argo  (hence  the  name  Argonauts,  given  to  the 
heroes),  in  search  of  a  "golden  fleece"  which  was  fabled  to  be 
nailed  to  a  tree  and  watched  by  a  dragon,  in  the  Grove  of  Ares, 
on  the  eastern  shores  of  the  Euxine,  an  inhospitable  region  of 
unknown  terrors.  The  expedition  was  successful,  and,  after  many 
wonderful  adventures,  the  heroes  returned  in  triumph  with  the 
sacred  relic. 

Different  meanings  have  been  given  to  this  tale.  In  its  primi- 
tive form  it  was  doubtless  a  pure  myth  of  the  rain-clouds ;  but  in 
its  later  forms  we  may  believe  it  to  symbolize  the  maritime  explo- 
rations in  the  eastern  seas  of  some  of  the  tribes  ^  of  Pelasgian  or 
Achaean  Greece. 

The  Seven  against  Thebes.  —  The  story  of  the  War  of  the 
Seven  against  Thebes  is  second  in  interest  and  importance  only 
to  that  of  the  Siege  of  Troy.  The  tale  begins  with  Laius,  king  of 
Thebes,  —  the  third  in  descent  from  Cadmus,  —  who,  having  been 
warned  by  an  oracle  that  he  would  be  slain  by  his  own  son,  should 
one  be  born  to  him,  thought  to  prevent  the  fulfilment  of  the  pre- 
diction by  causing  his  infant  child  to  be  exposed  on  Mount  Cithae- 
ron.  The  child  was  rescued  by  a  herdsman,  and  brought  up  by 
the  king  of  Corinth,  having  been  given  the  name  of  OEdipus. 

Upon  reaching  manhood,  Qi^dipus  went  to  the  oracle  at  Delphi 
to  make  inquiry  respecting  his  parentage.     The  only  answer  he 

1  Conjecturally  the  Minyans,  of  Orchomenus  in  Bceotia.  Orctiomenus  is  cele- 
brated in  the  traditions  of  the  Greeks  along  with  Troy,  Mycenae,  and  Tiryns  as 
one  of  the  centres  of  power  and  riches  in  Achaean  times.  The  remains,  on  the 
ancient  site,  of  walls  and  buildings,  particularly  the  ruins  of  a  vaulted  tomb,  like 
the  one  at  Mycenae,  and  known  as  the  "Treasury  of  Minyas,"  are  a  confirmation 
of  the  legends. 


20  PREIirSTOKIC  HELLAS. 

received  was  a  warning  not  to  return  to  his  native  country,  because 
should  he  do  so  he  would  kill  his  father  and  become  the  husband 
of  his  own  mother.  Therefore,  avoiding  Corinth,  CEdipus  turned 
towards  Thebes,  but  on  the  way  met  Laius  with  an  attendant,  and 
in  a  quarrel  which  arose  killed  the  king,  not  knowing  him  to  be 
his  father. 

Shortly  after  this  event  the  Thebans  were  distressed  by  a 
woman-headed  monster,  called  the  Sphinx,  who  proposed  a  riddle  ^ 
to  them,  and,  as  often  as  they  failed  in  their  answers,  seized  and 
devoured  one  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  city.  The  crown  of 
Thebes  and  the  hand  of  the  widow  (Jocasta)  of  Laius  were 
offered  to  any  one  who  should  solve  the  riddle.  (Edipus  inter- 
preted the  riddle,  and  became  king  of  Thebes  and  the  husband  of 
Jocasta.     Thus  the  oracle  was  fulfilled. 

Because  of  the  unwitting  crime,  a  terrible  doom  overhangs  the 
royal  house.  The  truth  finally  becomes  known.  Jocasta  hangs 
herself.  (Edipus,  in  a  frenzy  of  agony,  tears  out  his  own  eyes. 
His  sons,  Eteocles  and  Polynices,  drive  him  from  Thebes,  and 
upon  them  he  invokes  the  curse  of  Heaven.  The  unhappy  king 
is  accompanied  in  his  exile  by  his  daughters  Antigone  and  Ismene. 

The  brothers  now  quarrel  respecting  the  throne.  Polynices 
flees  to  Argos  and  seeks  aid  of  Adrastus,  king  of  that  city.  With 
five  chiefs  besides  himself  and  Polynices,  Adrastus  makes  war 
upon  Thebes.  All  the  heroes  except  Adrastus  are  killed  (if  we 
may  thus  speak  of  one,  Amphiaraus,  whom  the  opening  earth 
received  unharmed  into  the  world  of  shades),  while  the  two  un- 
natural brothers  also  fall,  each  by  the  hand  of  the  other. 

Creon,  the  new  king  of  Thebes,  refuses  to  allow  Adrastus  to 
bury  or  burn  the  bodies  of  his  fallen  companions.  In  his  distress, 
Adrastus  supplicates  Theseus,  king  of  Athens,  to  avenge  the 
wrong,  —  for  a  denial  of  the  rites  of  sepulture  was  considered  by 
the  Greeks  a  most  impious  act  (see  p.  56).     Theseus  makes  war 

1  "  What  animal  walks  on  four  legs  in  the  morning,  on  two  at  noon,  and  on 
three  at  night  ?  "  Answer :  man,  who  creeps  in  infancy,  walks  upright  in  manhood, 
and  supports  his  steps  with  a  staff  in  old  age. 


THE    TROJAN    WAR.  21 

upon  the  king  of  Thebes,  overcomes  him,  and  secures  burial 
honors  for  the  bodies  of  the  slain  heroes.' 

This  legend  branches  out  into  a  hundred  tales,  which  form  the 
basis  of  many  of  the  greatest  productions  of  the  (jreek  tragic 
poets. 

The  Trojan  War  (legendary  date  1194-1184  b.c).  —  The 
Trojan  War  was  an  event  about  which  gathered  a  great  circle  of 
tales  and  poems,  all  full  of  an  unfailing  interest  and  fascination. 
In  the  Homeric  epic  of  the  Iliad  is  rehearsed,  with  a  charm  of 
language  and  beauty  of  imagery  never  surpassed,  the  feats  of  the 
struggling  heroes,  Greek  and  Trojan,  beneath  the  walls  of  Ilios. 


Fig.  5.     THE   SO-CALLED  "BATTLE    BY  THE  SHIPS,"  BETWEEN    THE   GREEKS  AND 
THE   TROJANS.      (After  a  vase  painting.) 

Ilios,  or  Troy,  was  the  capital  of  a  strong  state,  represented 
as  Grecian  in  race  and  language,  which  had  grown  up  in  Asia 
Minor,  just  south  of  the  Hellespont.  The  traditions  tell  how 
Paris,  son  of  Priam,  king  of  Troy,  visited  the  Spartan  king 
Menelaus,  and  ungenerously  requited  his  hospitality  by  secredy 
bearing  away  to  Troy  his  wife  Helen,  famous  for  her  rare  beauty. 

All  the  heroes  of  Greece  flew  to  arms  to  avenge  the  wrong.  A 
host  of  one   hundred  thousand  warriors  was  speedily  gathered. 

1  Ten  years  after  the  unsuccessful  attempt  of  the  seven  chieftains,  the  sons  of 
those  who  were  lost,  headed,  according  to  one  account,  by  Adrastus,  and,  according 
to  other  versions,  by  Thersander,  the  son  of  Polynices,  waged  a  second  war  against 
Thebes,  to  avenge  the  death  of  their  fathers.  They  took  the  city  and  destroyed  it. 
This  expedition  was  known  as  the  VVar  of  the  Descendants  (Epigoni). 


22 


PREHISTORIC  HELLAS. 


Agamemnon,  brother  of  Menelaus  and  "king  of  men,"  was  chosen 
leader  of  the  expedition.  Under  him  were  the  "  Hon-hearted 
Achilles,"  of  Thessaly,  the  "  crafty  Odysseus,"  king  of  Ithaca, 
Ajax,  "  the  swift  son  of  Oileus,"  the  Telemonian  Ajax,  the  aged 
Nestor,  and  many  more  —  the  most  vahant  heroes  of  all  Hellas. 
Twelve  hundred  galleys  bore  the  gathered  clans  from  Aulis  across 
the  ^gean  to  the  Trojan  shores. 


7   o     i,   r> 
*    5     ^     5 


II'    B^wiS' 


Fig.  6.  THE  SO-CALLED  TREASURE  OF  PRIAM.  (Found  by  Dr.  Schliemann  at  Hissar- 
lik,  or  Troy.  The  collection  includes  golden  diadenns  and  personal  ornannents  of  various  kinds, 
together  with  cups,  vases,  and  other  articles  of  gold,  silver,  and  copper.  From  Schliemann's 
Troy  and  its  Remains.) 

For  ten  years  the  Greeks  and  their  allies  hold  in  close  siege  the 
city  of  Priam.  The  Trojans  have  as  allies  many  of  the  states  of 
Asia  Minor,  as  well  as  warriors  from  more  remote  lands.  On  the 
plains  beneath  the  walls  of  the  capital,  the  warriors  of  the  two 
armies  fight  in  general  battle  or  contend  in  single  encounter.  At 
first,  Achilles  is  foremost  in  every  fight ;  but  a  fair-faced  maiden, 
who  fell  to  him  as  a  prize,  having  been  taken  from  him  by  his 
chief,  Agamemnon,  he  is  filled  with  wrath,  and  sulks  in  his  tent. 


THE    TROJAN    WAR. 


23 


Though  the  Greeks  are  often  sorely  pressed,  still  the  angered  hero 
refuses  them  his  aid.  At  last,  however,  his  friend  Patroclus  is 
killed  by  Hector,  eldest  son  of  Priam,  and  then  Achilles  goes  forth 
to  avenge  his  death.  In  a  fierce  combat  he  slays  Hector,  fastens 
his  body  to  a  chariot,  and  drags  it  thrice  round  the  walls  of  Troy. 
These  later  events,  beginning  with  the  wrath  of  Achilles  and 
ending  with  the  funeral  rites  of  Patroclus  and  Hector,  form  the 
subject  of  the  Iliad  of  Homer. 


^^^S^-«h^^^j.£.  \»M.  TttAdM^^^  '^S^^^, 

1 

g 

^ 

^ 

..'  '       '^^^^ 

^SS 

i 

^^^^ 

& 

^ 

Fig.  7.     DR.  SCHLIEMANN'S    EXCAVATIONS    AT   HISSARLIK,  OR   TROY.     (Showing 
remains  of  city  walls,  tower,  palace,  and  paved   roadway.) 

The  city  is  at  last  taken  through  a  device  of  the  artful  Odysseus. 
Upon  the  plain  in  sight  of  the  walls  is  built  a  wooden  statue  of  a 
horse,  in  the  body  of  which  are  hidden  several  Grecian  warriors. 
Then  the  Greeks  retire  to  their  ships,  as  though  about  to  abandon 
the  siege.  The  Trojans  issue  from  their  gates  and  gather  in 
wondering  crowds  about  the  image.  They  believe  it  to  be  an 
offering  sacred  to  Athena,  and  so  dare  not  destroy  it ;  but,  on  the 
other  hand,  misled  by  certain  omens  and  by  a  lying  Greek  named 
Sinon,  they  make  a  breach  in  the  walls  of  their  city,  and  drag  the 
statue  within.     At  night  the  concealed  warriors   issue    from    the 


24  PREHISTORIC  IIRILAS. 

horse,  open  the  gates  of  the  city  to  the  Grecians,  and  Troy  is 
sacked,  and  burned  to  the  ground.  The  aged  Priam  is  slain,  after 
having  seen  his  sons  and  many  of  his  warriors  perish  before  his 
face,  ^neas,  with  his  aged  father  Anchises  and  a  few  devoted 
followers,  escapes,  and,  after  long  wanderings,  reaches  the  Italian 
land  and  there  becomes  the  founder  of  the  Roman  race. 

It  is  a  matter  of  difficulty  to  point  out  the  nucleus  of  fact  in 
this  the  most  elaborate  and  interesting  of  the  Grecian  legends. 
Some  believe  it  to  be  the  dim  recollection  of  a  prehistoric  conflict 
between  the  Greeks  and  the  natives  of  Asia  Minor,  arising  from 
the  attempt  of  the  former  to  secure  a  foothold  upon  the  coast. 
Since  at  the  time  of  the  composition  of  the  Iliad  the  coast  was  in 
the  possession  of  Greeks,  the  Trojans  —  such  is  the  conjecture  — 
are  represented  as  Greeks,  in  order  that  the  description  may  cor- 
respond to  the  then  existing  state  of  things. 

That  there  really  was  in  prehistoric  times  in  the  Troad  a  city 
which  was  the  stronghold  of  a  powerful  and  rich  royal  race  has 
been  placed  beyond  doubt  by  the  excavations  and  discoveries  of 
Dr.  Schliemann.^ 

1  Dr.  Schliemann  was  an  enthusiastic  student  of  Homer,  who  beheved  in  the 
poet  as  a  narrator  of  actual  events.  In  the  year  1870  he  began  to  make  excavations 
in  the  Troad  (at  Hissarlik),  on  a  spot  pointed  out  by  tradition  as  the  site  of  ancient 
Troy.  His  faith  was  largely  rewarded.  He  found  the  upper  part  of  the  hill  where 
he  carried  on  his  operations  to  consist  of  the  remains  of  a  succession  of  settlements, 
whose  ruins  were  superimposed  one  upon  another  like  the  strata  in  a  geological 
formation.  In  the  second  stratum  from  the  bottom  he  found  remains  of  such  a 
character  that  he  was  led  to  believe  that  they  were  the  actual  memorials  of  the  Troy 
of  the  lUad.  Besides  uncovering  massive  walls  and  gateways  belonging  to  the  defen- 
sive architecture  of  the  place,  and  the  foundations  of  a  palace,  he  exhumed  numer- 
ous articles  of  archaic  workmanship  in  bronze,  silver,  and  gold,  including  the 
so-called  "Treasure  of  Priam"  (see  Fig.  6).  To  the  question.  Are  these  the 
remains  and  the  relics  of  the  city  and  race  of  which  Homer  sung  ?  no  positive 
answer  can  be  given.  Possibly  so.  The  geography  of  the  spot  corresponds  as 
well  as  could  be  expected  to  the  descriptions  of  the  poet,  due  allowance  being 
made  for  poetical  license.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  the  works  of  art  that  have  been 
brought  to  light  would  seem  to  belong  to  a  period  not  later  than  the  fourteenth 
century  B.C.,  whereas  the  legend  places  the  siege  of  the  city  by  the  Achaean  Greeks  in 
the  twelfth  century.  Gardner  sums  up  the  matter  in  the  following  words :  "  It  is  prob- 
able that  the  author  of  the  Iliad  had  some  historic  siege  in  mind,  and  that  the  place 
besieged  stood  upon  the  Hill  of  Hissarlik."  —  New  Chapters  in  Greek  History,  \).^'^. 


RETURN  OF   THE    GRECIAN  CHIEFTAINS. 


25 


Return  of  the  Grecian  Chieftains.—  After  the  fall  of  Troy,  the 
Grecian  chieftains  and  princes  returned  home.  The  legends  repre- 
sent the  gods  as  withdrawing  their  protection  from  the  hitherto 
favored  heroes,  because  they  had  not  spared  the  altars  of  the  Tro- 
jans. Consequently  many  of  them  were  driven  in  endless  wander- 
ings over  sea  and  land.  Homer's  Odyssey  portrays  the  sufferings 
of  the  "  much-enduring  Odysseus,"  impelled  by  divine  wrath  to 
long  journeyings  through  strange  seas. 


Fig.  8.     TOMBS   OF    MYCEN/E.      (From   Schliemann  s  Mycen<B>) 

In  some  cases,  according  to  the  tradition,  advantage  had  been 
taken  of  the  absence  of  the  princes,  and  their  thrones  had  been 
usurped.  Thus  in  Argolis,  ^gisthus  had  won  the  unholy  love  of 
Clytemnestra,  wife  and  queen  of  Agamemnon,  who  on  his  return 
was  murdered  by  the   guilty  couple.-'     In  pleasing  contrast  with 


1  Accepting  as  historically  true  those  legends  of  the  Greeks  which  represent 
Argolis  as  having  in  the  earliest  times  nourished  a  race  of  powerful  rulers,  and 
Mycenae  as  having  been  the  burial  place  of  Agamemnon  and  his  murdered  com- 
panions, Dr.  Schliemann,  made  confident  by  his  wonderful  discoveries  at  Hissarlik, 


26  rKEHISTORIC  HELLAS. 

this  we  have  exhibited  to  iis  the  constancy  of  Penelope,  although 
sought  by  many  suitors  during  the  absence  of  her  husband 
Odysseus. 

The  Dorian  Invasion,  or  the  Return  of  the  Heraclidae  (leg- 
endary date  1 104  B.C.).  —  We  set  the  tradition  of  the  return  of 
the  Heraclidae  apart  from  the  legends  of  the  three  enterprises  just 
detailed,  for  the  reason  that,  as  we  shall  see  in  a  moment,  it  un- 
doubtedly contains  a  large  historical  element. 

The  traditions  of  the  Greeks  tell  how  Heracles,  an  Achaean,  in 
the  times  before  the  Trojan  War,  ruled  over  the  Peloponnesian 
Achaeans.  Just  before  that  event  his  children  were  driven  from 
the  land.  Eighty  years  after  the  war,  the  hundred  years  of  exile 
appointed  by  the  fates  having  expired,  the  descendants  of  the 
hero,  at  the  head  of  the  Dorians  from  Northern  Greece,^  returned, 

began  excavations  at  Mycenae  in  the  year  1876.  He  soon  unearthed  remains  of  an 
even  more  remarkable  character  than  those  on  the  supposed  site  of  Troy.  The 
walls  of  the  ancient  citadel  and  the-foundations  of  a  great  palace  were  laid  bare. 
But  the  most  interesting  of  all  the  discoveries  on  the  spot  were  several  tombs  (see 
Fig.  8)  holding  the  remains  of  seventeen  bodies,  which  were  surrounded  by  a  multi- 
tude of  articles  of  gold,  silver,  and  bronze  —  golden  masks  and  breastplates,  drinking 
cups  of  solid  gold,  bronze  swords  inlaid  with  gold  and  silver,  and  personal  ornaments 
of  every  kind.  Dr.  Schliemann  believed  that  he  had  found  the  actual  body  of 
Agamemnon,  the  leader  of  the  Greeks  at  Troy.  This  conclusion  of  enthusiasm  has 
not  been  accepted  by  archaeologists ;  but  all  are  agreed  that  the  ancient  legends,  in 
so  far  as  they  represent  Mycenae  as  having  been  in  early  pre-Dorian  times  the 
seat  of  an  influential  and  wealthy  royal  race,  rest  on  a  basis  of  actual  fact. 
See  Schliemann's  Mycence.  In  the  years  1884-85  Dr.  Schliemann  made  extensive  ex- 
cavations at  Tiryns,  where  he  laid  bare  the  foundations  of  the  walls  of  the  ancient 
citadel  and  the  ruins  of  an  extensive  palace  like  that  at  Mycenas.  Consult  his  Tiryns. 
1  Previous  to  their  migration  the  Dorians  dwelt  in  Thessaly,  on  the  eastern 
slopes  of  the  Pindus.  In  the  same  region  dwelt  also  the  ancestors  of  the  Boeotians. 
Both  peoples  were  driven  from  their  seats  by  an  invasion  of  the  plain  of  the  Peneus 
by  the  Thessalians,  who,  coming  from  Epirus,  took  possession  of  the  land  and 
gave  it  their  own  name.  The  Boeotians  moved  southward  into  Central  Greece, 
and  subduing  the  inhabitants  of  the  ancient  cities  of  Orchomenus  and  Cadmea,  — 
representatives  apparently  of  the  same  primitive  civilization  whose  monuments  we 
find  at  Mycenas  and  Tiryns, —  settled  as  masters  in  the  land.  Thenceforth  the  dis- 
trict was  known  from  its  conquerors  as  Boeotia.  The  expelled  Dorians  likewise 
migrated  southward,  and  after  dwelling  for  a  time  in  Central  Greece,  moved  on 
into  the  Peloponnesus.  A  part  of  the  race,  however,  remaining  behind,  formed 
the  Doris  of  historic  times. 


COAfMENTS   ON   THE  DORIAN  INVASION.  27 

with  their  aid  effected  the  conquest  of  the  greater  part  of  the 
Peloponnesus,  and  estabHshed  themselves  as  masters  in  the  land 
that  had  formerly  been  ruled  by  their  semi-divine  ancestor. 

The  Dorians  set  up,  in  the  different  Peloponnesian  districts 
of  which  they  took  possession,  oligarchical  and  military  govern- 
ments, and  developed,  generally,  social  and  political  systems  char- 
acterized by  austere  and  martial  discipline. 

Towards  their  conquerors  the  subjected  Achseans  cherished  an 
inextinguishable  hatred,  save  in  some  parts  where  the  two  races 
appear  to  have  quietly  blended,  and  the  distinctive  relations  of 
conqueror  and  conquered  to  have  been  almost  wholly  obliterated. 
Some  of  the  dispossessed  Achaeans,  crowding  towards  the  north 
of  the  Peloponnesus,  drove  out  the  lonians  who  occupied  the 
southern  shore  of  the  Corinthian  Gulf,  and  settling  there,  gave 
the  name  Achaia  to  all  that  region.  Arcadia,  in  the  centre  of  the 
Peloponnesus,  was  another  district  which  did  not  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  invaders,  and  remained  distinctively  non-Dorian. 

Comments  on  the  Legend  of  the  Dorian  Invasion. — The 
nucleus  of  fact  in  the  legend  of  the  return  of  the  Heraclidse  is 
doubtless  a  prehistoric  invasion  of  the  Peloponnesus  by  the  Dori- 
ans from  the  north  of  Greece,  and  the  expulsion  or  subjugation 
by  them  of  the  native  inhabitants  of  the  peninsula.  The  entire 
movement  may  well  have  occupied  several  centuries. 

This  alleged  return  of  the  descendants  of  Heracles  to  the  land 
of  their  fathers  has  been  likened  to  the  return  of  the  children  of 
Israel  from  Egypt  to  Palestine,  and  the  conquest  of  that  land  by 
them  on  the  ground  of  an  ancient  claim  to  the  country  through 
their  ancestor  Abraham.  Again,  the  migration,  for  such  seems  to 
have  been  the  real  character  of  the  movement,  has  been  likened 
to  the  great  migration  of  the  Germans  in  the  fifth  century  of  our 
era.  In  this  parallel,  the  old  Achaean  culture  of  whose  glory 
Homer  sung,  is  regarded  as  having  been  eclipsed  by  the  incoming 
of  the  rude  and  warlike  Dorians,  just  as  the  Hght  of  Grseco-Roman 
civilization  was  lost  in  the  night  that  followed  the  subversion  of 
Rome  by  the  northern  barbarians.     According  to  this  conception 


28  PREHISTORIC  HEILAS. 

the  period  embraced  between  the  time  of  the  Dorian  migration 
and  the  thirst  Olympiad^  (776  B.C.),  a  period  which  the  traditions 
make  to  cover  a  space  of  328  years,  corresponds  to  the  Dark  Ages 
in  the  history  of  mediaeval  Europe. 

The  parallel  may  be  carried  still  further.  As  the  Teutonic  inva- 
sion, while  destroying  so  much  in  the  pre-existing  culture  of  Rome, 
brought  in  the  elements  of  a  new  and  higher  civilization,  so  did 
the  Dorian  invasion,  while  overwhelming  the  old  Achaean  world, 
bring  in  at  the  same  time  the  elements  of  a  new  and  better 
culture.  For  the  Dorians,  like  the  Teutons,  were  a  pure  and 
vigorous  race,  a  race  filled  with  martial  and  moral  energy.  Says 
Laurent,  commenting  upon  the  comparison  with  which  we  are 
dealing,  "  Without  doubt,  the  little  Hellenic  tribes  are  not  to  be 
compared  in  numbers  to  the  German  invaders ;  but  the  influence 
of  the  Dorian  invasion  on  the  development  of  civilization  was  as 
great  as  that  of  the  people  of  the  North  on  the  social  regenera- 
tion of  Europe."  - 

The  comparison  thus  drawn  out,  though  we  cannot  say  posi- 
tively that  it  faithfully  figures  the  relation  of  the  great  Dorian 
migration  to  the  Achaean  civilization  commemorated  in  the 
Homeric  poems,  is  still  a  valuable  conjectural  framework  for 
the  history  of  Greece  before  the  First  Olympiad.^ 

Migrations  to  Asia  Minor.  —  The  Greek  legends  represent 
that  the  Dorian  invasion  of  the  Peloponnesus  resulted  in  three  dis- 
tinct migrations  from  the  mother  land  to  the  shores  of  Asia  Minor 
and  the  adjoining  islands. 

The  northwestern  shore  of  Asia  Minor  was  settled  by  ^olian 
emigrants,  mainly  from  Bceotia,  among  whom  were  many  Achaean 
refugees  from  the  Peloponnesus.'*    The  neighboring  island  of  Les- 

1  See  p.  51. 

2  Etudes  sur  VHistoire  de  i  Hunianite,  t,  ii.  p.  312. 

3  The  evidence  furnished  by  recent  archaeological  discoveries  certainly  tends  to 
justify  the  conclusion  that  that  prehistoric  civilization,  of  which  Dr.  Schliemann  and 
others  have  brought  to  light  so  many  wonderful  remains,  was  actually  overwhelmed 
by  the  Dorian  invasion.     See  Gardner,  New  Chapters  in  Greek  History,  p.  85. 

■*  Curtius  believes  that  the  struggle  which  must  mevitably  have  arisen  between 


SOCIETY  TN   THE   HEROIC  AGE.  29 

bos  became  the  home  and  centre  of  ^olian  cuhure  in  poetry  and 
music. 

The  coast  to  the  south  of  the  Cohans  was  occupied  by  Ionian 
emigrants,  chiefly  from  the  neighborhood  of  the  Corinthian  CJulf, 
who,  uniting  with  their  Ionian  kinsmen  already  settled  upon  that 
shore  and  with  the  non- Hellenic  peoples  whom  they  conquered, 
built  up  a  line  of  splendid  cities  (Ephesus,  Miletus,  etc.),  which 
finally  united  to  form  the  heart  of  the  celebrated  Ionian  confed- 
eracy. The  Cyclades,  together  with  Chios  and  Samos,  were  at 
the  same  time  filled  with  Ionian  settlers. 

South  of  the  lonians,  all  along  the  southwestern  shore  of  Asia 
Minor,  the  Dorians,  cramped  finally  in  the  Peloponnesus,  estab- 
lished their  colonies.  They  also  settled  the  important  islands  of 
Cos  and  Rhodes,  and  conquered  and  colonized  Crete. 

The  traditions  concerned  with  these  various  setdements  repre- 
sent them  as  having  been  effected  in  a  very  short  period  ;  but  it 
is  probable  that  the  movement  embraced  many  generations,  — 
possibly  as  long  a  time  as  has  been  occupied  by  the  English  race 
in  colonizing  the  different  lands  of  the  Western  World. 

Society  in  the  Heroic  Age  as  pictured  in  the  Homeric  Poems. 
— The  poems  of  Homer,  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey,  which  were 
composed  before  historic  times  in  Greece,  were  believed  by  the 
Greeks  not  only  to  give  a  truthful  account  of  events  connected 
with  the  Trojan  enterprise,  but  also  to  reflect  a  faithful  picture  of 
society  in  the  Heroic  Age.  Hence  it  remains  for  us  to  add  a  few 
words  upon  this  subject,  in  order  to  complete  our  sketch  of  pre- 
historic Hellas  as  it  presented  itself  to  the  imagination  of  a  Greek 
of  the  historic  period. 

The  Homeric  poems  represent  the  Greeks  in  the  Heroic  Age 
as  ruled  by  hereditary  kings  of  semi-divine  or  superhuman  lineage. 

these  emigrants  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  Asiatic  coast  may  have  been  the  basis 
of  the  story  of  the  Trojan  War.  "  We  may  with  reason,"  he  says,  "  convey  this  war 
out  of  the  isolation  in  which  it  remains  wholly  inconceivable  into  a  larger  circle  of 
events,  and  transfer  it  out  of  the  mythical  times  into  which  it  was  carried  by  the 
poets  into  the  times  of  actual  battle." —  Griech.  Gesch.,  i.  p.  121  (6th  ed.). 


30 


PREHISTORrC  HELLAS, 


The  Iliad  says,  "  The  rule  of  many  is  not  a  good  thing  :  let  there 
be  one  leader  only,  one  king,  him  to  whom  Zeus  has  given  the 
sceptre  and  guardian  authority,  that  he  may  rule."  ^  The  king 
was  at  once  the  priest,  the  judge,  and  the  military  leader  of  his 
people.  He  was  expected  to  prove  his  divine  right  to  rule,  by 
his  courage,  strength,  wisdom,  and  eloquence.  When  he  ceased 
to  display  these  qualities,  *'the  sceptre  departed  from  him." 


THE   WORLD    ACCORDING   TO   HOMER. 


The  king  was  surrounded  by  a  council  {houle)  of  chiefs  or 
nobles.  This  council,  however,  was  simply  an  advisory  body. 
The  king  listened  to  what  the  nobles  had  to  say  upon  any  measure 
he  might  propose,  and  then  acted  according  to  his  own  will  or 
judgment,  restrained  only  by  the  time-honored  customs  of  the 
community. 

1  ii.  203  206, 


SOCIETY  IN  THE  HEROIC  AGE.  31 

Next  to  the  council  of  the  chiefs  there  was  a  general  assembly, 
called  the  Agora,  made  up  of  all  the  common  freemen.  The 
members  of  this  body  could  not  take  part  in  any  debate,  nor 
could  they  vote  upon  any  question.  They  were  called  together 
to  hear  matters  discussed  by  the  king  and  his  chiefs,  that  they 
might  know  what  was  resolved  upon,  and  perhaps  learn  the  argu- 
ments for  and  against  the  resolution.  This  body,  so  devoid  seem- 
ingly of  all  authority  in  the  Homeric  age,  was  destined  to  become 
the  all-powerful  popular  assembly  in  the  democratic  cities  of  his- 
toric Greece. 

Of  the  condition  of  the  common  freemen  we  know  but  little  : 
the  legendary  tales  were  concerned  chiefly  with  the  kings  and 
nobles.  We  are  certain,  however,  that  the  well-to-do  class  owned 
their  farms,  and  cultivated  them  with  their  own  hands ;  and  that 
the  poorer  class  labored  for  hire  on  the  estates  of  the  nobles. 
Slavery  existed,  but  the  slaves  did  not  constitute  as  numerous  a 
class  as  they  became  in  historic  times,  nor  do  they  seem  in  general 
to  have  been  treated  harshly. 

In  the  family  the  wife  held  a  much  more  dignified  and  hon- 
ored position  than  she  occupied  in  later  times.  The  charming 
story  of  the  constant  Penelope,  which  we  find  in  the  Odyssey, 
assures  us  that  the  Homeric  age  cherished  a  chivalric  feeling  for 
woman. 

In  all  ranks  of  society  life  was  marked  by  a  sort  of  patriarchal 
simplicity.  Manual  labor  was  not  yet  thought  to  be  degrading. 
Odysseus  constructs  his  own  house  and  raft,  and  boasts  of  his 
skill  in  swinging  the  scythe  and  guiding  the  plow.  Spinning 
and  weaving  were  the  chief  occupation  of  the  women  of  all 
classes. 

One  pleasing  and  prominent  virtue  of  the  age  was  hospitality. 
There  being  no  public  inns,  a  sort  of  gentle  necessity  forced  to 
the  entertainment  of  wayfarers.  The  reception  accorded  the 
stranger  was  the  same  simple  and  open-hearted  hospitality  that 
the  Arab  sheik  of  to-day  extends  to  the  traveller  whom  chance 
brings   to   his   tent.     The  very  best   the   house  afforded  was  set 


32 


PREHISTORIC  HELLAS. 


before  the  stranger,  and  not  until  after  he  had  refreshed  himself 
was  he  asked  as  to  his  journey  and  its  object. 

But  while  hospitable,  the  nobles  of  the  Heroic  Age  were  often 
cruel,  violent,  and  treacherous.  Homer  represents  his  heroes  as 
perpetrating  without  a  blush  all  sorts  of  frauds  and  villanies. 
Piracy  was  considered  an  honorable  occupation.  "  It  was  custom- 
ary in  welcoming  a  stranger  to  ask  him  whether  his  object  in 
travelling  was  to  enrich  himself  by  piracy,  just  as  we  might  to-day 
ask  a  person  whether  his  object  be  to  enrich  himself  by  mercantile 
speculation." 

Art  and  architecture  are  represented  as  having  made  consider- 
able advance.     The  cities  are  walled,  and  the  palaces  of  the  kings 

possess  a  certain 
barbaric  splendor. 
Coined  money  is  ap- 
parently unknown, 
wealth  being  reck- 
o  n  e  d  chiefly'  i  n 
flocks  and  herds, 
and  in  uncoined 
metals.  The  poems 
make  no  certain 
mention  of  the  art 
of  writing,  but  give 
elaborate  descrip- 
tions of  sculptures 
of  marvellous  work- 
m  a  n  s  h  i  p.  They 
represent  the  Greeks  as  already  skilled  in  building  ships,  yet  as 
possessing  no  definite  knowledge  of  the  Mediterranean  beyond 
Greece  proper  and  the  neighboring  islands  and  shores. 

Comments  on  the  Homeric  Picture  of  Prehistoric  Hellas. — 
We  have  said  that  this  Homeric  picture  of  society  in  the  Heroic 
Age  was  regarded  by  the  historic  Greek  as  a  true  reflection  of  the 
manners,  customs,  and  life  of  his  ancestors  in  that  remote  fore- 


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^ 

^^m 

^'i^^^^l 

■ 

P 

Mm  ^ 

■ 

^.r 

^^^^^ 

Wm^^^^^A 

Fig.  9.     GALLERY   IN   THE   SOUTH   WALL   AT   TIRYNS. 
("Tirynsthe  strong-walled." — Iliad  it.  559.) 


COMMENTS   ON   THE   HOMERIC  PICTURE.  33 

time.  But  of  course  this  view  of  the  matter  may  be  very  far 
from  the  truth.  We  may  form  many  different  conjectures  respect- 
ing the  descriptions  of  Homer :  thus  we  may  view  the  poems  as 
reflecting  faithfully  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  poet's  own 
time ;  or  we  may  conclude  that  they  mirror  accurately  the  society 
of  an  age  and  civilization  that  had  already  in  the  poet's  time 
passed  away,  but  of  which  tradition  still  preserved  a  vivid 
memory ;  or  yet  again,  we  may  regard  the  poems  as  presenting 
an  ideahzed  picture  of  a  past  of  which  only  a  dim  recollection 
was  living  in  the  minds  of  men.  All  that  we  have  a  right  to 
assert  positively  about  the  matter  is  well  expressed  in  these  words 
of  Professor  Abbott :  "  They  [the  poems]  present  to  us  the  ideals 
of  character  and  life  which  delighted  the  audiences  to  which  they 
were  addressed,  and  continued  to  delight  generation  after  genera- 
tion till  Hellenism  became  extinct."  ^ 

References.  — It  is  difficult  to  give  references  on  the  subject  of  this  chap- 
ter, for  the  reason  that  Greek  Mythology  is  in  general  dealt  with  as  a  whole, 
no  eftort  being  made  to  separate  from  the  mass  of  stories  of  the  gods  and 
heroes  those  which  we  may  term  historical  legends,  that  is,  those  which  pro- 
fess to  deal  with  the  experiences  and  deeds  of  the  ancestors  of  the  historic 
Greeks.  For  works  on  the  general  subject  of  Greek  Mythology,  see  bibli- 
ography at  the  end  of  the  book.  The  following  works,  after  the  Iliad  and 
Odyssey  (Bryant's  translation),  will  be  found  useful  in  the  present  con- 
nection :  — 

Gardner,  Neiu  Chapters  in  Greek  History,  chs.  i.-v.;  compares  the  Greek 
legends  with  recent  archaeological  discoveries  and  discusses  the  question 
whether  or  not  these  discoveries  may  be  regarded  as  a  verification  in  any 
degree  of  the  legends.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  47-78.  Grote, 
History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  i.  pp.  309-437;  (twelve  volume  ed.), 
vol.  i.  pp.  340-489;  chiefly  on  the  interpretation  of  the  Greek  myths.  Holm, 
History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  chs.  iii.-x.  Symonds,  Studies  of  the  Greek  Poets, 
vol.  i.  ch.  ii.  Timayenis,  Greece  in  the  Times  of  Homer ;  deals  with  the 
homes  of  the  people,  the  family,  education,  dress,  and  ornaments.  Church, 
Stories  from  Houier,  fascinating  book  for  young  readers;  and  Stories  from 
Greek  Tragedians.  Benjamin,  Troy,  its  Legends,  History,  and  Literature 
(Epoch  Series).  The  Classic  Myths  in  English  Literature,  based  chiefly  on 
Bulfinch's  "Age  of  Fable"  (edited    by  Charles  Mills  Gayley).     In  chapters 

1  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  p.  161. 


34 


PREHISTORIC  HELLAS. 


xvii.-xxvii.  are  given  the  tales  of  the  older  and  the  younger  Greek  heroes, 
including  the  legends  of  the  Argonauts,  the  Seven  against  Thebes,  and  the 
Trojan  War.  Cox,  Tales  of  Ancient  Greece.  Diehl,  Excursions  in  Greece 
(from  the  French)  ;  an  entertaining  account  of  the  results  of  recent  excavations 
at  Mycenge,  Tiryns,  and  on  other  sites  in  Greece.  Schliemann,  Troy  and  its 
Retnains  (1875);  Mycena  (1878);  Jlios  (1881);  7roJa  (1884);  and  Tiryns 
(1885).  For  a  most  admirable  summary  of  all  these  works  of  Dr.  Schliemann 
and  a  scholarly  estimate  of  the  historical  import  of  his  discoveries,  see  Schuch- 
hardt,  Schliemann'' s  Excavations  (from  the  German).  See  also  Lang,  Homer 
and  the  Epic,  ch.  xv,,  entitled  "  Homer  and  Archaeology,"  for  a  shorter 
discussion  of  the  same  subject. 


10.      FORTY-OARED    GREEK    BOAT.      (After  a  vase   painting  ) 


THE    CITY-STATE.  35 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE   INHERITANCE   OF  THE    HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

Introductory.  —  We  have  seen  in  the  preceding  chapter  what 
the  Greeks  of  the  historic  age  beheved  respecting  the  Hfe  and 
doings  of  their  forefathers  in  prehistoric  times.  It  is  certain  that 
the  prehistoric  Greeks  did  not  hve  in  such  a  romantic  world  as 
their  children  imagined,  and  that  they  did  not  perform  all  the 
wonderful  exploits  that  were  attributed  to  them  ;  yet  it  is  certain 
that  the  Greek  race  before  its  appearance  in  history  had  had  a 
long  and  wonderful  experience.  How  do  we  know  this?  Just 
as  we  know  that  a  man  mature  in  character  and  rich  in  culture 
has  seen  much  of  the  world.  The  Greeks  when  they  appear  in 
history  appear  with  their  heads  and  hands  full  of  those  things 
which  are  alone  the  gift  of  life.  They  possessed  age-marked 
political  and  religious  institutions,  a  rich  language,  an  elaborate 
mythology,  an  unrivalled  epic  literature,  and  an  art  which  though 
undeveloped  was  yet  full  of  promise. 

Therefore  to  complete  our  introduction  to  the  study  of  the 
Greeks  of  historic  times,  we  shall  now  give  a  short  account  of 
their  mental  and  physical  belongings  when  they  first  appeared  in 
the  light  of  history. 

I.     Political   Institutions. 

The  City-State.  —  The  light  that  falls  upon  Greece  in  the 
eighth  and  seventh  centuries  b.c.  shows  the  land  filled  with  cities 
whose  genesis  and  growth  carry  us  far  back  into  prehistoric  times. 
For  these  cities  were  not,  as  were  most  of  the  cities  of  Eastern 
lands,  mere  collections  of  houses.     Each  was  a  highly  developed 


36       THE   TNHERTTANCE    OE    THE   HfSTORlC   GREEKS. 

social  and  political  organism.  Each  was  an  independent,  self- 
governing  community,  like  a  modern  state  or  nation.  It  made 
war  and  peace,  and  held  diplomatic  relations  with  its  neighbors. 
Its  citizens  were  aliens  in  every  other  city. 

According  to  the  Greek  idea  the  model  city  must  be  neither 
too  large  nor  too  small.  In  this  as  in  everything  else  the  ancient 
Greeks  applied  the  Delphian  rule,  "  Measure  in  all  things." 
There  is  a  limit,  Aristotle  argued,  to  the  size  of  a  city  as  there  is 
to  a  plant,  an  animal,  or  a  ship.  It  should  be  large  enough,  he 
maintained,  to  be  "self-sufficing,"  and  yet  not  too  large  to  be  well 
governed.  That  the  government  might  be  good  he  thought  that 
the  city  should  be  small  enough  to  enable  each  citizen  to  know  all 
his  fellow-citizens.' 

In  most  cases,  the  city-state  consisted  of  a  single  walled  town, 
with  a  little  circumjacent  farming  or  pasture  land.  Sometimes, 
however,  the  city  embraced,  besides  the  central  town,  a  large 
number  of  smaller  places.-  Thus  the  city  of  Athens,  in  historic 
times,  included  all  Attica  with  its  hundred  or  more  villages  and 
settlements,  some  of  which  were  walled  towns.  Each  of  these 
villages,  politically  regarded,  was  an  integral  part  of  Athens,  and 
those  of  their  inhabitants  who  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  voting  in 
the  public  assembly  there  were  Athenian  citizens.  But  Attica,  it 
must  be  borne  in  mind,  was  an  exception  to  the  rule.  In  general 
the  districts  or  divisions  of  Greece,  as  enumerated  in  our  first 
chapter,  were  divided  among  a  greater  or  less  number  of  inde- 
pendent cities. 

Within  the  walls  of  the  city  were  found  various  public  build- 
ings, such  as  temples,  gymnasia,  and  market-places.  A  prominent 
feature  of  many  cities  was  the  Acropolis,  a  rocky  height,  which 
formed  the  stronghold  of  the  place.  As  the  cities  grew  in  wealth 
and  culture  in  historic  times,  the  public  buildings  grew  in  number, 

1  Jowett's  Aristotle,  Politics,  vii.  4. 

2  In  all  or  almost  all  cases,  however,  save  in  that  of  Athens,  the  outlying  villages 
were  so  close  to  the  walled  town  that  all  their  inhabitants,  in  the  event  of  a  sudden 
i-aid  by  enemies,  could  get  to  the  city  gates  in  one  or  two  hours  at  most. 


PRIMARY  ELEMENTS   OF  EARLY   CITY-STATE.         37 

size,  and  magnificence.  The  market-places  were  surrounded  with 
splendid  porticoes ;  the  Acropolis,  consecrated  now  to  the  gods, 
was  crowned  with  rich  temples ;  while  beyond  the  city  walls  were 
created  public  groves  and  gardens  beautified  with  covered  colon- 
nades and  art  monuments  of  every  kind. 

The  Origin  and  Primary  Elements  of  the  Early  City-State. 
—  The  primitive  Greek  city-state,  as  we  have  already  said,  had  a 
very  composite  structure.  It  was  made  up,  not  of  individuals,  but 
of  a  number  of  communities,  each  comprising  a  group  of  famihes 
closely  bound  together  by  ties  of  kinship  (real  or  fictional)  and  of 
worship.  These  primary  units  ^  were  gathered  into  larger  groups, 
known  as  phratries  or  brotherhoods.  Above  the  phratries  stood 
the  tribe,  and  above  the  tribes  the  city  {po/is),  which  like  all  the 
lower  unions  had  its  common  altar-hearth,  called  the  Prytaneiwi, 
on  which  the  sacred  fire  was  kept  constantly  burning. 

Among  the  various  causes  which  in  prehistoric  times  operated 
to  draw  the  villages  into  the  wider  union  of  the  city,  the  most 
prominent  seem  to  have  been  the  necessity  of  mutual  defence 
against  foreign  enemies,  the  strong  hand' of  the  conqueror,  and 
the  renown  of  some  local  deity.  The  first  of  these  causes  was 
certainly  a  potent  force  making  for  union  in  rude  and  anarchical 
times.^  Several  neighboring  village  communities  would  unite  in 
building,  on  some  easily  defended  hill,  a  citadel  intended  as  a 
common  refuge  in  times  of  danger.     Naturally  this  rude  fortress, 

1  The  group  with  which  we  are  here  concerned  is  nothing  else  than  the  so- 
called  village  community.  In  Greece  it  is  \\\e.  genos,  at  Rome  the  ^^;/j,  in  early 
Germany  the  mark,  in  England  the  township,  in  Russia  the  mir,  among  nomadic 
peoples  the  clan.  We  may  regard  the  group  as  simply  the  expanded  family ;  for 
in  a  primitive  society  the  family  as  it  expands  holds  together,  being  indissolubly 
united  by  the  worship  of  ancestors,  whereas  in  advanced  society  as  it  expands  it 
disintegrates,  the  several  households  no  longer  living  together,  but  each  usually 
going  its  own  way. 

2  For  the  traditional  account  of  the  formation  of  the  city  of  Athens  out  of  the 
villages  or  groups  of  villages  of  Attica,  see  below,  p.  102 ;  and  for  an  instance  in 
later  Greek  history  of  the  creation  of  a  great  city  out  of  a  large  number  of  Arcadian 
villages  or  townships,  see  further  on,  ch.  xxiv.  For  the  reverse  process,  namely, 
the  decomposition  of  cities  into  villages,  of  which  there  are  many  instances  in 
Greek  history,  consult  Index  under  thfe  entries  Phocians,  Mantinea,  and  Olynthus, 


38       THE  INHERITANCE   OF  THE  HISTORIC   GREEKS, 

which  often  sheltered  the  chief  gods  of  the  village  as  well  as  in 
an  emergency  the  villagers  themselves,  became  in  time  the  nucleus 
of  a  settlement,  and  later,  after  the  formation  of  the  city,  the 
Acropohs  or  citadel  of  the  place. 

Of  the  several  graded  societies  of  which  the  Greek  city  was  com- 
posed, the  smallest,  that  is  to  say,  the  clan  or  the  group  of  families, 
was  the  most  important.  The  members  of  this  group  were,  as  we 
have  said,  the  actual  or  reputed  descendants  of  a  common  ances- 
tor, whom  they  worshipped  as  a  sort  of  guardian  divinity.  After 
the  formation  of  the  city  it  was  at  first  only  the  members  of  these 
primary  groups  who  were  regarded  as  citizens,  or  who  had  any  lot 
or  part  in  the  direction  of  public  affairs.  All  non-members  or 
strangers  were  jealously  excluded  from  the  worship  of  the  clan, 
the  phratry,  the  tribe,  and  the  city,  and  in  consequence  from 
all  participation  in  civil  and  political  rights,  for  as  yet  there  was 
no  distinction  recognized  between  things  secular  and  things 
religious.  Only  those  who  worshipped  the  same  gods  could  be 
citizens  of  the  same  city.  It  was  only  after  a  long  lapse  of  time 
that  the  ties  which  bound  together  these  primitive  family  groups 
became  relaxed,  largely  through  a  change  in  the  religious  beliefs 
of  men,  and  that  the  way  was  thus  paved  for  the  entrance  of 
strangers  into  the  city.  This  great  revolution  was  already  in 
progress  at  the  opening  of  the  historical  period.^ 

The  constitutional  reforms  at  Athens  effected  by  Cleisthenes 
(p.  i2i)  which  placed  the  members  of  the  ancient  Attic  clans 
and  the  non-members  of  these  societies  on  the  same  political  foot- 
ing, and  the  long  and  bitter  struggle  at  Rome  between  the  same 
classes  there,  —  the  patricians  and  the  plebeians,  —  are  phases  of 
this  transformation  of  ancient  society,  which  seems  to  have  taken 
place  sooner  or  later  in  all  the  cities  of  Greece  and  Italy,  and 
which  finally  made  property  and  residence  instead  of  birth  and 
worship  the  basis  of  civil  and  political  rights  and  privileges. 

The  City  Government.  —  As  we  have  seen,  the  Homeric  poems 

1  For  the  origin  and  nature  of  the  city-state  see  Fustel  de  Coulanges'  The 
Ancient  City  and  W.  Warde  Fowler's  The  City- State  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans. 


INFLUENCE  OF  THE  CITY  UPON  GREEK  HISTORY.      39 

represent  the  preferred  form  of  government  in  the  Heroic  Age  as 
having  been  a  patriarchal  monarchy  (pp.  29,  30).  By  the  dawn 
of  the  historic  period,  however,  these  paternal  m(3narchies  of  the 
Achaean  age  had  given  place,  in  almost  all  the  chief  cities,  to 
oligarchies  or  aristocracies.  The  power  of  the  "Zeus-born"  king 
had  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  nobles  of  his  former  council. 
In  some  cases  the  monarchy  was  allowed  to  exist  alongside  the 
new  power  that  had  arisen  in  the  state,  just  as  in  England 
the  ancient  titular  sovereign,  divested  of  all  real  authority,  is  per- 
mitted to  stand  by  the  side  of  the  new  and  actual  sovereign  — 
the  People.  Thus  in  Sparta  the  old  monarchy  was  never  actually 
abolished,  though  the  kings  —  there  were  two  —  were  stripped  of 
so  much  of  their  power  that  they  remained  for  the  most  part 
scarcely  more  than  shadow-sovereigns. 

The  history  of  this  revolution  among  the  Greeks,  which  brought 
in  oligarchical  in  place  of  monarchical  rule,  is  very  obscure,  and 
we  need  not  here  dwell  upon  it.  We  need  only  to  note  well  the 
fact  that  at  the  period  of  which  we  are  speaking,  political  power 
in  the  various  Greek  cities  had,  speaking  in  general  terms,  passed 
into  the  hands  of  the  oligarchs,  that  is  to  say,  of  the  leading 
families  constituting  the  clans  which  had  come  together  to  form 
the  city.  The  selfish  and  oppressive  rule,  or  rather  misrule,  of 
these  oligarchs,  forms  the  starting-point  in  the  constitutional 
history  of  those  cities  which  finally  evolved  democratic  govern- 
ment. A  most  interesting  and  instructive  part  of  the  internal 
history  of  Athens,  in  so  far  as  it  is  known  to  us,  consists  of  the 
struggles  through  which  the  humbler  members  of  the  original 
clans  secured  an  equal  share  with  the  aristocratic  members  of  the 
groups  in  the  management  of  public  affairs. 

The  Influence  of  the  City  upon  Greek  History.  —  We  cannot 
understand  Greek  history  unless  we  get  at  the  outset  a  clear  idea 
of  the  Greek  city  and  of  the  feelings  of  a  Greek  towards  the  city 
of  which  he  was  a  member.  It  was  the  body  in  which  he  hved, 
moved,  and  had  his  being.  It  was  his  country,  his  fatherland, 
for  which  he  Hved  and  for  which  he  died.     Exile  from  his  native 


40       THE   LVHERITA.VCE    OE   THE   HISTORIC    GREEK'S. 

city  was  to  him  a  fate  scarcely  less  dreaded  than  death.  This 
devotion  of  the  Greek  to  his  city  was  the  sentiment  which  corre- 
sponds to  patriotism  among  iis,  only,  being  a  narrower  as  well  as 
a  religious  feeling,  it  was  much  more  intense. 

It  was  this  strong  city-feeling  among  the  Greeks  which  prevented 
them  from  ever  uniting  to  form  a  single  nation.  It  was  not  until 
late  in  their  history,  after  their  religious  ideas  had  undergone  a 
change,  and  after  much  hard  experience,  that  they  attempted 
seriously  to  form  wide  political  confederations. 

These  late  efforts  after  unity,  however,  failed,  so  that  the  history 
of  Greece  to  the  very  last  is  the  history,  in  general,  of  a  vast  number 
of  independent  cities  wearing  each  other  out  with  their  never- 
ending  disputes  and  wars  arising  from  a  thousand  and  one  petty 
causes  of  rivalry,  jealousy,  and  hatred. 

But  it  was  these  very  circumstances  that  made  life  in  the  Greek 
cities  so  intense  and  strenuous,  and  which  developed  so  wonder- 
fully the  faculties  of  the  Greek  citizen.  There  arose  in  the  Hellenic 
cities  a  rich  and  many-sided  culture,  which  became  the  precious 
legacy  of  Greece  to  later  ages.  In  the  eager  intellectual  atmos- 
phere of  the  agora,  human  talents  were  developed  as  plants  are 
forced  in  the  growing  air  of  a  conservatory.  The  cities  of  Hellas 
nurtured  an  art  of  ideal  perfection.  Within  their  walls  oratory, 
literature,  history,  and  philosophy  developed  forms  of  supreme 
excellence.  In  a  word,  the  wonderful  thing  which  we  call  Greek 
civilization  was  the  flower  and  fruitage  of  the  city-state. 

2.  Religious  Ideas  and  Institutions. 

The  Greek  Religion  a  Growth.  —  At  the  opening  of  the  historic 
period  in  Greece,  we  find  the  Greeks  in  possession  of  a  pantheon 
and  worship  that  were  manifestly  the  product  of  many  centuries 
of  reflection  on  divine  things.  The  basis  of  this  religion  was  the 
old  Aryan  worship  of  ancestors  and  nature-deities,  the  same  as 
formed  the  groundwork  of  the  Roman  religion ;  but  during  the 
centuries  many  foreign  elements  had    been   introduced  into  the 


THE    GREEK  RELIGION  A    GROWTH.  41 

system  and  more  or  less  perfectly  assimilated.  Thus  there  were 
in  it  elements  of  the  lowest  form  of  worship  known  as  fetichism, 
which  may  have  been  gathered  up  through  contact  of  the  Hellenes 
with  barbarous  races,  or,  as  is  more  likely,  which  were  simply 
survivals  from  a  primitive  stage  of  the  Hellenic  religion  itself. 
One  evidence  of  such  a  passage  of  the  Hellenic  religion  from  a 
low  to  a  purer  and  higher  stage  is  found  in  the  legend  of  the  war 
of  the  earth-born  giants  against  the  Hellenic  gods ;  for  this  myth 
may  probably  be  regarded  as  a  reflection  of  a  prehistoric  conflict 
between  two  opposing  religious  systems,  issuing  in  the  triumph  of 
the  higher,  represented  by  the  gods  of  the  historic  Greeks  ;  a  con- 
flict which  we  may  liken  to  that  between  Christianity  and  Paganism 
in  later  times. 

There  were  also  in  the  system  elements  which  were  plainly 
importations  from  the  Orient.  Thus  the  cult  of  Aphrodite,  with 
its  licentious  rites,  had  been  introduced  from  Phoenicia ;  the 
orgiastic  worship  of  the  great  earth-mother  Cybele,  had  been 
brought  in  from  Phrygia ;  while  the  cult  of  Dionysus,  the  god  of 
the  vine,  with  all  its  wild  corybantic  rites,  had  been  imported  from 
Asia  by  the  way  of  Thrace. 

Out  of  these  diverse  elements  the  Hellenic  genius,  by  the  time 
of  Homer,  had  evolved  one  of  the  most  elaborate  and  beautiful 
of  the  religious  systems  of  the  ancient  world.  The  pantheon  had 
been  in  the  main  arranged ;  many  of  the  grosser  and  immoral 
elements  in  the  stories  of  the  gods  had  been  eliminated  or  were 
in  the  course  of  eUmination  by  a  deepening  ethical  feeling ;  and 
the  chief  gods,  in  striking  contrast  to  the  monstrous  divinities 
of  the  Oriental  mythologies,  had  been  moulded  by  the  fine 
Hellenic  imagination  into  human  forms  of  surpassing  beauty  and 
grace. 

The  Greeks  of  historic  times  believed  that  the  work  of  deter- 
mining the  relationship  of  the  gods,  arranging  their  genealogies, 
and  fixing  their  characteristics  and  attributes,  had  been  done  by 
the  poets  Homer  and  Hesiod.^     But  mythologies  and  pantheons, 

1  For  Hesiod,  see  ch.  xxix. 


42       THE  INHERITANCE    OF  THE   HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

like  all  other  things,  grow  and  are  not  made.  These  poets  could 
in  the  main  have  done  nothing  more  than  simply  record  the 
results  of  the  reflections  and  imaginings  on  divine  things  of  the 
race  for  whom  they  sung. 

The  Olympian  Council.  —  The  crown  of  the  Greek  pantheon 
was  a  council  or  court  of  twelve  members,  embracing  six  gods  and 
six  goddesses.  The  male  deities  were  Zeus,  the  father  and  ruler 
of  gods  and  men,  and  the  wielder  of  the  thunderbolt ;  Poseidon, 
ruler  of  the  sea ;  Apollo,  or  Phoebus,  the  god  of  light,  of  music, 
of  healing,  of  poetry,  and  of  prophecy;  Ares,  the  god  of  war; 


Fig.  II,  GROUP  OF  GODS  AND  GODDESSES.  (From  the  frieze  of  the  Parthenon.  "The 
chief  gods,  m  striking  contrast  with  the  monstrous  divinities  of  the  Oriental  mythologies,  had 
been  moulded  by  the  fine  Hellenic  imagination  into  human  forms  of  surpassmg  beauty  and 
grace."  —  p.  41.) 

Hephaestus,  the  deformed  god  of  fire,  and  the  patron  of  the  use- 
ful arts  dependent  upon  it,  the  forger  of  the  thunderbolts  of  Zeus, 
and  the  fashioner  of  arms  and  of  all  sorts  of  metal  work  for  the 
heroes  and  the  gods ;  Hermes,  the  wing-footed  herald  of  the 
celestials,  the  god  of  invention  and  of  commerce,  himself  a  thief 
and  the  patron  of  thieves. 

The  female  divinities  were  Hera,  the  proud  and  jealous  queen 
of  Zeus ;  Athena,  or  Pallas,  —  who  sprang  full-grown  from  the 
forehead  of  Zeus,  —  the  goddess  of  wisdom  and  the  patroness  of 
the  domestic  arts  ;  Artemis,  the  goddess  of  the  chase  ;  Aphrodite, 
the  goddess  of  love  and  beauty,  born  of  the  sea-foam ;  Hestia, 


ATHENA   AND    THE  PANATHENAIC  FESTIVAL.  43 

the  goddess  of  the  hearth ;  Demeter,  the  earth-mother,  the 
goddess  of  grains  and  harvests.^ 

These  divinities  were,  in  the  Greek  conception,  simply  magni- 
fied human  beings,  moved  by  purely  human  feelings  and  motives. 
They  have  their  earthly  friendships  and  loves ;  they  give  way  to 
fits  of  anger  and  jealousy ;  they  take  sides  with  men  in  their 
quarrels  and  mingle  in  the  battle  fray.^ 

Athena  and  the  Panathenaic  Festival.  —  From  among  the 
crowd  of  Hellenic  divinities  we  select  for  particular  mention 
Athena,  Demeter,  Dionysus,  and  Apollo,  *for  the  reason  that 
the  worship  of  each  of  these  had  a  special  significance  for  Greek 
life  and  art. 

Athena  was  a  characteristically  Hellenic  divinity.  She  was  a 
personification  of  pure  intellect,^  and  hence  in  the  myth  of  her 
creation  was,  as  we  have  seen,  appropriately  represented  as  issu- 
ing full-formed  from  the  forehead  of  Zeus.     She  had  temples  in 

1  The  Latin  names  of  these  divinities  are  as  follows  :  Zeus  =  Jupiter ;  Poseidon 
=  Neptune ;  Apollo  —  Apollo ;  Ares  =  Mars ;  Hephaestus  =  Vulcan ;  Hermes  = 
Mercury;  Hera  =  Juno;  Athena  =  Minerva;  Artemis  =  Diana ;  Aphrodite  = 
Venus ;  Hestia  —  Vesta ;  Demeter  =  Ceres.  These  Latin  names,  however,  are  not 
the  equivalents  of  the  Greek  names,  and  should  not  be  used  as  such.  The  mythol- 
ogies of  the  Hellenes  and  Romans  were  as  distinct  as  their  languages. 

2  Besides  the  great  gods  and  goddesses  that  constituted  the  Olympian  Council, 
there  was  an  almost  infinite  number  of  other  deities,  celestial  personages,  and 
monsters  neither  human  nor  divine.  Hades  ruled  over  the  lower  realms; 
Dionysus  was  the  god  of  wine ;  Eros,  of  love ;  Iris  was  the  goddess  of  the  rainbow, 
and  the  special  messenger  of  Zeus;  Hebe  (goddess)  was  the  cupbearer  of  the 
celestials;  the  goddess  Nemesis  was  the  punisher  of  crime,  and  particularly  the 
queller  of  the  proud  and  arrogant ;  ^olus  was  the  ruler  of  the  winds,  which  he 
confined  in  a  cave  secured  by  mighty  gates.  There  were  nine  Muses,  inspirers  of 
art  and  song.  The  Nymphs  (Naiads,  Nereids,  Dryads,  Hamadryads,  etc.)  were 
beautiful  maidens,  who  peopled  the  woods,  the  fields,  the  rivers,  the  lakes,  and  the 
ocean.  Three  Fates  allotted  life  and  death,  and  three  Furies  (Eumenides,  or 
Erinnyes)  avenged  crime,  especially  murder  and  sacrilegious  crimes.  Besides 
these  there  were  the  Dragon,  which  guarded  the  golden  apples  of  the  Hesperides ; 
Cerberus,  the  watch-dog  of  Hades ;  Scylla  and  Charybdis,  sea-monsters  that  made 
perilous  the  passage  of  the  Sicilian  Straits ;  the  Centaurs,  the  Cyclops,  the  Harpies, 
the  Gorgons,  and  a  thousand  others, 

3  At  first,  however,  Athena  was  a  pure  nature  deity  —  the  goddess  of  the  thun- 
derstorm.    "  She  brandishes  the  thunderbolt,  and  is  hence   called    Pallas  or  the 


44       THE   INHERFTAKCB:    OF   THE   HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

various  places  in  Greece,  but  she  was  in  a  special  sense  the  deity 
and  patroness  of  the  Athenians,  whose  city  bore  her  name.  Here 
was  built  in  her  honor  on  the  Acropohs  the  Parthenon,  the  most 
perfect  temple  created  by  the  genius  and  piety  of  the  Greeks. 
In  connection  with  her  worship  at  Athens  were  celebrated  the 
so-called  Panathenaic  festivals,  which  drew  great  crowds  to  Athens 
from  all  parts  of  Hellas.  A  chief  feature  of  these  festivals  was 
a  solemn  procession  of  men,  youths,  and  maidens,  in  which  was 
displayed  the  peplos,  or  sacred  robe,  intended  as  a  gift  to  the 
goddess.  On  this  garment  were  embroidered  various  mytho- 
logical subjects,  particularly  the  contests  between  Athena  and  the 
giants  and  other  monsters  which  she  subdued.  The  celebrated 
frieze  of  the  Parthenon  was  a  representation  of  scenes  from  this 
Panathenaic  procession. 

Dionysus  and  the  Dionysiac  Festivals.  —  The  cult  of  Diony- 
sus, the  wine-god,  was  diffused  throughout  Greece.  His  worship 
was  accompanied  with  orgies  which  in  their  gross  and  licentious 
nature  were  rather  Asiatic  than  Hellenic.  The  festivals  in  honor 
of  the  god,  called  Dionysia,  were  celebrated  with  uncommon  mag- 
nificence in  Attica.  The  special  significance  of  these  festivals  lay 
in  the  fact  that  they  included  theatrical  exhibitions,  given  in  later 
times  in  the  great  theatre  of  Dionysus  at  Athens,  and  that  out 
of  these  dramatic  representations  grew  the  wonderful  Athenian 
drama,  embracing  comedies  and  tragedies  which  mark  the  highest 
perfection  of  the  dramatic  art. 

Demeter  and  the  Eleusinian  Mysteries.  —  The  cult  of  Demeter 
and  Persephone,  the  "  Madonna  and  Child  of  Greece,"  was  an 
important  part  of  the  religious  inheritance  of  the  historic  Greeks, 
mainly  for  the  reason  that  there  were  associated  with  this  worship 
at  Eleusis  in  Attica  the  celebrated  Eleusinian  Mysteries.     Every 

Wielder.  .  .  .  The  Gorgon  [on  her  shield]  is  the  thundercloud,  the  tongue-dart- 
ing serpents  surrounding  the  head  are  the  lightning  flashes,  which  burst  forth  in  all 
directions.  Athena  is  called  Glaucopis,  the  owl-eyed,  probably  because  she  is  also 
the  goddess  of  the  clear  sky,  which  has  been  made  bright  by  the  purifying  storm, 
and  because  the  sight  of  the  owl  pierces  the  darkness."  Holm,  History  of  Greece, 
vol.  i.  p.  126. 


DEMETER  AND    THE   ELEUSINL4N  MYSTERIES. 


45 


fifth  year  the  Athenians  observed  with  peculiar  solemnity,  in 
honor  of  the  mother-goddess,  a  festival  called  the  Eleiisinia,  which 
acquired  a  national  fame  and  importance. 

In  the  Eleusinian  Mysteries  the  religion  of  Greece,  it  is  gen- 
erally believed,  found  its  highest  expression.  There  were  secrets 
connected  with  this  worship  which  were  known  only  to  the 
initiated,  and  which  were  guarded  so  carefully  that  to  this  day 
it  is  not  known  positively  what  were  the  doctrines  inculcated,  nor 
the  exact  nature  of  the  rites  performed.  It  seems  almost  certain, 
however,  that  the  hopeful  doctrine  of  a  future  life  more  real  than 


Fig.  12.  THE  CARRYING  OFF  OF  PERSEPHONE  BY  HADES  TO  THE  UNDERWORLD: 
HER  LEAVE-TAKING  OF  HER  MOTHER  DEMETER.  (A  myth  of  the  seasons,  con- 
nected with  the   Eleusinian    Mysteries.') 

that  represented  by  the  popular  religion  was  taught  or  at  least 
suggested  by  the  symboHsm  of  the  Mysteries,^  and  that  the  initiated 
were  helped  thereby  to  live  better  and  happier  lives. 

The  Eleusinian  Mysteries  were  regarded  as  peculiarly  sacred, 
and  to  intrude  upon  the  services  of  the  worship  or  to  ridicule  or 
mimic  the  rites  was  an  offence  deemed  worthy  of  death.  The 
whole  course  of  the  Peloponnesian  War  was  probably  changed 
through  the  Athenians  becoming  convinced  that  these  Mysteries 

1  Demeter  as  the  goddess  of  agriculture,  and  Persephone  as  the  goddess  of  veg- 
etation, would  naturally,  through  the  burial  and  resurrection  of  the  seed-corn, 
become  symbols  and  parables,  to  the  more  thoughtful  at  least,  of  the  mystery  of 
death  and  of  a  new  life  arising  therefrom. 


46       THE   INHERITANCE    OF   THE   HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

had  been  profaned  by  one.  of  their  generals,  Alcibiades,  and 
through  their  attempts  to  bring  him  to  trial  and  punishment  for 
the  alleged  crime. 

Apollo  and  his  Worship.  —  But  among  the  crowd  of  Hellenic 
deities  the  one  of  greatest  historical  significance  was  Apollo.^  He 
was  the  special  god  of  the  Dorians,  and  it  was  chiefly  through 
their  migrations,  conquests,  and  colonizations  that  his  cult  was 
diffused  throughout  Hellas.  This  Apollonian  cult  was  perhaps 
the  most  precious  part  of  the  legacy  of  prehistoric  to  historic 
Hellas  ;  for,  compared  with  most  of  the  other  Grecian  cults,  that 
of  Apollo  was  pure  and  spiritual,  and  exerted  in  general  a  restrain- 
ing and  elevating  influence  upon  the  men  of  Greece. 

Apollo  was  the  Revealer;  it  was  his  mission  as  the  god  of 
prophecy  to  make  known  the  hidden  things  of  Zeus.  He  was 
the  god  of  music  and  poetry,  the  inspirer  of  all  those  emotions 
which  express  themselves  in  lofty  song.  He  was  the  wise  coun- 
sellor, and  to  him  the  Greeks  turned  for  advice  and  guidance  in 
all  cases  of  perplexity.  He  was  the  god  of  moral  purification, 
and  at  his  sanctuaries  transgressors  sought  and  found  absolution 
and  cleansing.  Above  all  he  was  the  moral  teacher  of  men.  In 
the  mythology  of  the  Greeks  one  of  his  first  achievements  was 
the  slaying  of  the  monster  Python.  Whatever  else  the  myth  may 
mean,  it  expresses  in  allegory  the  triumph  of  light  over  darkness, 
of  good  over  evil.  It  is  in  keeping  with  this  that  we  find  at  the 
oracle-temples  of  Apollo,  particularly  at  the  shrine  of  Delphi,  of 
which  we  shall  speak  in  a  moment,  a  lofty  morality  inculcated  and 
enforced.  Indeed,  the  Apollonian  religion  was  a  chief  motive 
force  in  Greek  life  and  culture.  Curtius  ventures  to  say  that 
"  Apollo  was  the  founder  of  Hellenic  history." 

The  Delphian  Oracle  and  its  Influence  on  Greek  Life  and 
History.  —  From  the  foregoing  remarks  respecting  the  general 
character  of  the  worship  of  Apollo,  we  pass  naturally  to  speak  of 

1  In  the  early  period  of  Greek  nature-worship  Apollo  was  simply  the  god  of 
light ;  his  arrows  are  the  darting  rays  of  the  sun,  his  flocks  are  the  clouds,  while 
his  moral  qualities  are  emblems  of  the  nature  of  light. 


THE  DELPHIAN  ORACLE  AND  ITS  INFLUENCE.        47 

the  Apollonian  oracle  at  Delphi,  which  was  another  invaluable 
legacy  from  the  misty  Hellenic  foretime  to  historic  Greece.  But 
first  we  will  say  a  few  words  of  a  general  character  respecting 
oracles  and  divination  among  the  ancient  Greeks. 

The  Greeks  believed  that  in  the  early  ages  the  gods  were  wont 
to  visit  the  earth  and  mingle  with  men.  But  even  in  Homer's 
time  this  familiar  intercourse  was  a  thing  of  the  past  —  a  tradition 
of  a  golden  age  that  had  passed  away.  In  these  later  and  more 
degenerate  times  the  recognized  modes  of  divine  communication 
with  men  were  by  oracles,  and  by  casual  and  unusual  sights  and 
sounds,  as  thunder  and  lightning,  a  sudden  tempest,  an  eclipse,  a 
flight  of  birds,  the  appearance  or  action  of  the  sacrificial  victims, 
or  any  strange  coincidence.  The  art  of  interpreting  these  signs 
or  omens  was  called  the  art  of  divination.  It  is  probable  that 
this  art  was  introduced  into  Greece  from  Chaldaea  by  the  way  of 
Egypt  and  the  countries  of  Asia  Minor. 

But  though  the  gods  often  revealed  their  will  and  intentions 
through  signs  and  portents,  still  they  granted  a  more  special 
communication  of  counsel  through  what  were  known  as  oracles} 
These  communications,  it  was  believed,  were  made  sometimes  by 
Zeus,^  but  more  commonly  by  Apollo.  Not  everywhere,  but  only 
in  chosen  places,  did  these  gods  manifest  their  presence  and  com- 
municate the  divine  will.  These  favored  spots  were  called  oracles, 
as  were  also  the  responses  there  received. 

The  most  renowned  of  the  Greek  oracles  was  that  at  Delphi,  in 

1  We  should  perhaps  add  that  prophets  were  not  unknown  among  the  Greeks 
These  were  persons  who,  like  the  Hebrew  prophets,  were  believed  to  have  a  super- 
natural insight  into  the  future.  Sometimes  this  gift  was  hereditary,  and  then  a 
family  or  house  came  to  be  regarded  as  set  apart  from  ordinary  men.  Among  the 
most  noted  of  the  Greek  prophets  were  Tiresias,  the  blind  soothsayer  of  Thebes, 
and  Calchas,  the  adviser  of  the  Grecians  at  the  siege  of  Troy. 

2  The  oracle  of  Zeus  of  widest  repute  was  that  at  Dodona  (seep.  2).  Quite 
recently  (in  1876)  the  site  of  the  Dodonean  shrine  was  excavated  by  M.  Cara- 
panos,  who  was  rewarded  by  the  discovery  of  many  votive  offerings,  such  as 
vessels,  earrings,  bracelets,  and  various  other  articles  of  a  similar  character,  besides, 
most  interesting  of  all,  a  considerable  number  of  leaden  tablets  holding  the  ques- 
tions of  the  visitors  to  the  oracle.     See  Diehl's  Excursions  in  Greece,  ch.  iii. 


48        THE    INHERITANCE    OF    THE    HISTORIC    GREEKS. 

Phocis.  Here,  from  a  deep  fissure  in  the  rocks,  arose  stupefying 
vapors,  which  were  thought  to  be  the  inspiring  breath  of  Apollo. 
Over  this  spot  was  erected  a  temple  in  honor  of  the  Revealer.  The 
communication  was  generally  received  by  the  Pythia,  or  priestess, 
seated  upon  a  tripod  placed  above  the  orifice.     As  she  became 

overpowered  by  the  in- 
fluence of  the  prophetic 
exhalations,  she  uttered 
the  message  of  the  god. 
These  mutterings  of  the 
Pythia  were  taken  down 
by  attendant  priests,  in- 
terpreted, and  written  in 
hexameter  verse.  Some- 
times the  will  of  Zeus 
was  communicated  to 
the  pious  seeker  by 
dreams  and  visions 
granted  him  while  sleep- 
ing in  the  temple  of  the 
oracle. 

Fig.  13.     THE    DODONEAN    ZEUS.i  SomC  of  the  TCSponSCS 

of  the  oracle  contained 
plain  and  wholesome  advice  ;  but  very  many  of  them,  particularly 
those  that  implied  a  knowledge  of  the  future,  were  made  obscure 
and  ingeniously  ambiguous,  so  that  they  might  correspond  with 
the  event  however  affairs  should  turn,  and  thus  the  credit  of  the 
oracle  remain  unimpaired. 

But  notwithstanding  that  the  oracle  was  often  misused  by 
designing  priests,  as  religious  institutions  in  all  ages  have  been, 
still  it  rendered  many  and  eminent  services  to  Greek  civilization.^ 
"  The  ordinary  histories  which  we  read,"  says  Professor  Mahaffy, 

1  See  p.  47,  note  2. 

2  We  have  exercised  special  care  in  wliat  follows  in  the  text  not  to  ascribe  to 
the  Delphian  oracle  an  influence  upon  (ireek   life  and  thought  greater  than  the 


THE  DELPHIAN  ORACLE   AND   ITS  INFLUENCE.        49 

"give  us  but  little  idea  of  the  mighty  influence  of  this  place 
[Delphi]  in  the  age  of  its  faith.  We  hear  of  [the  oracle]  being 
consulted  by  Croesus,  or  by  the  Romans,  and  we  appreciate  its 
renown  for  sanctity ;  but  until  of  very  late  years  there  was  small 
account  taken  of  its  political  and  commercial  omnipotence." 

The  Delphian  oracle  was  the  ratifier  of  the  political  constitu- 
tions of  the  Greek  cities,  and  thereby  became  the  promoter  of 
social  and  political  order.  Thus  the  Spartan  legislator  Lycurgus 
secured  from  Delphi  an  oracle  approving  his  constitution  (p.  63), 
and  the  fact  that  his  laws  were  believed  to  have  been  ratified  by 
the  god,  certainly  helped  to  lend  to  them  that  sanctity  in  which 
they  were  held  by  succeeding  generations. 

Apollo  also  superintended,  or  at  least  encouraged,  the  founding 
of  colonies.  The  managers  of  the  oracle,  doubtless  through  the 
visitors  to  the  shrine,  kept  themselves  informed  respecting  the 
islands  and  coasts  of  the  Mediterranean,  and  thus  were  able  to 
give  good  advice  to  those  contemplating  the  founding  of  a  new 
settlement.  In  this  field,  as  we  shall  learn,  the  oracle  rendered  a 
great  service  to  the  Greeks. 

The  Delphian  oracle,  furthermore,  exerted  a  profound  influence 
upon  Hellenic  unity.  Delphi  was,  in  some  respects,  such  a  rehg- 
ious  centre  of  Hellas  as  papal  Rome  was  of  mediaeval  Europe. 
It  was  the  common  altar  of  the  Greek  race.  By  thus  providing  a 
worship  open  to  all,  Delphi  drew  together  by  bonds  of  religious 
sentiment  and  fraternity  the  numberless  communities  of  Greece, 
and  created,  if  not  a  pohtical,  at  least  a  religious  union  that 
embraced  the  entire  Hellenic  world. 

The  influence  of  the  oracle  in  the  sphere  of  morahty  is  shown 
by  the  well-known  story  of  Glaucus.  Glaucus  was  a  citizen  of 
Sparta  who  enjoyed  an  enviable  reputation  for  integrity.  To 
this  man  a  citizen  of  Miletus  entrusted  a  large  treasure  for  safe- 
keeping.     Many  years   passed.     The   man   who   had   made    the 

facts  would  seem  to  justify.  Curtius  undoubtedly  overestimates  the  influence  of 
the  oracle,  particularly  in  the  field  of  Greek  colonization.  For  a  criticism  of  his 
views  see  Holm,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  244-249. 


50       THE   INHERITANCE    OF   THE   HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

deposit  died.  His  sons  came  to  Glaucus  to  claim  the  money. 
Glaucus  denied  having  any  remembrance  of  the  alleged  trans- 
action. He  told  his  visitors,  however,  to  call  again  after  some 
days,  and  if  by  that  time  he  could  recall  any  memory  of  the  affair, 
they  should  have  the  treasure.  The  young  men  went  away,  and 
Glaucus  hurried  to  Delphi,  in  order  to  ask  the  god  if  he  might 
not  swear  that  he  had  never  received  the  money.  To  his  tempting 
question  he  was  told  threateningly  that  the  vengeance  of  Heaven 
ever  pursues  the  race  of  the  perjurer.  And  he  and  his  house 
came  to  a  miserable  end.^ 

Thus  was  the  Delphian  Apollo  the  enforcer  of  the  moral  law  of 
Hellas.  Dyer,  in  his  Gods  in  Greece,  reminds  us  that  Zeus  reigned 
but  did  not  govern.  Apollo  governed,  and  made  his  authority 
respected  in  every  part  of  the  Hellenic  world.  "The  only  real 
discipline  .  .  .  emanated  from  Delphi  and  the  far-sighted,  wide- 
minded  oracle  of  Apollo  at  that  holy  place."  ^ 

The  Olympian  Gaines.  —  Another  of  the  most  characteristic  of 
the  religious  institutions  of  the  Greeks  which  they  inherited  from 
the  Heroic  Age,  was  the  sacred  games  celebrated  at  Olympia  in 
Elis,  in  honor  of  the  Olympian  Zeus.  The  origin  of  this  festival 
is  lost  in  the  obscurity  of  tradition ;  but  by  the  opening  of  the 
eighth  century  B.C.  it  had  assumed  national  importance.  In 
776  B.C.  a  contestant  named  Coroebus  was  victor  in  the  foot-race 
at  Olympia,  and  as  from  that  time  the  names  of  the  victors  were 
carefully  registered,  that  year  came  to  be  used  by  the  Greeks  as 
the  starting-point  in  their  chronology.  The  games  were  held 
every  fourth  year,  and  the  interval  between  two  successive  festi- 
vals was  known  as  an  Olympiad.^ 

The  contests  consisted  of  foot-races,  boxing,  wrestling,  and 
other  athletic  games.     Later,  chariot-racing  was  introduced,  and 

1  Herod,  vi.  86. 

2  Dyer,  The  Gods  in  Greece,  p.  26. 

3  The  date  of  an  occurrence  was  given  by  saying  that  it  happened  in  the  first, 
second,  third,  or  fourth  year  of  such  an  Olympiad  —  the  first,  second,  or  third,  etc. 
This  mode  of  designating  dates,  however,  did  not  come  into  general  use  in  Greece 
before  the  third  century  H.C 


THE  PYTHIAN,   NEMEAN,  AND  ISTHMIAN  GAMES.      51 

became  the  most  popular  of  all  the  contests.  The  competitors 
must  be  of  Hellenic  race ;  must  have  undergone  special  training 
in  the  gymnasium ;  and  must,  moreover,  be  unblemished  by  any 
crime  against  the  state  or  sin  against  the  gods.  Spectators  from 
all  parts  of  the  world  crowded  to  the  festival.  The  deputies  of 
the  different  cities  vied  with  one  another  in  the  richness  and 
splendor  of  their  chariots  and  equipments,  and  in  the  magnificence 
of  their  retinues. 

The  victor  was  crowned  with  a  garland  of  sacred  olive  ;  heralds 
proclaimed  his  name  abroad ;  his  native  city  received  him  as  a 


Fig.  14.     GREEK    RUNNERS. 


conqueror,  sometimes  through  a  breach  made  in  the  city  walls; 
his  statues,  executed  by  eminent  artists,  were  erected  at  Olympia 
and  in  his  own  city ;  sometimes  even  divine  honor  and  worship 
were  accorded  to  him ;  and  poets  and  orators  vied  with  the 
artist  in  perpetuating  his  name  and  triumphs  as  the  name  and 
triumphs  of  one  who  had  reflected  immortal  honor  upon  his  native 
state. 

The  Pythian,  the  Nemean,  and  the  Isthmian  Games.  —  Besides 
the  Olympian  games  there  were  transmitted  from  the  prehistoric 
times  the  germs  at  least  of  three  other  national  festivals.     These 


52        THE   TNHERTTANCR    OF   THE   HISTORIC   GREEKS. 


were  the  Pythian,  held  in  honor  of  Apollo,  near  his  shrine  and 
oracle  at  Delphi ;  the  Nemean,  celebrated  in  honor  of  Zeus,  at 
Nemea,  in  Argolis ;  and  the  Isthmian,  observed  in  honor  of 
Poseidon,  on  the  Isthmus  of  Corinth.  Just  when  these  festivals 
had  their  beginnings  it  is  impossible  to  say,  but  by  the  time  the 
historic   period    had  fairly   opened,  that  is  to    say,  by  the    sixth 

century  B.C.,  they  had  lost 
their  local  and  assumed  a 
national  character,  and  were 
henceforth  to  be  prominent 
features  of  the  common  life 
of  the  Greek  cities. 

Influence  of  the  Grecian 
Games.  —  For  more  than 
a  thousand  years  these 
national  festivals,  particu- 
larly those  celebrated  at 
Olympia,  exerted  an  im- 
influence  upon  the  social,  religious,  and  literary  life  of 
They  enkindled   among   the  widely   scattered    Hellenic 


POSEIDON    AND   THE    ISTHMIAN 
GAMES.     (From  a  cameo.) 


Fig.  15. 

mense 
Hellas. 

states  and  colonies  a  common  literary  taste  and  enthusiasm ; 
for  into  all  the  four  great  festivals,  save  the  Olympian,  were 
introduced,  sooner  or  later,  contests  in  poetry,  oratory,  and 
history.  During  the  festivals,  poets  and  historians  read  their 
choicest  productions,  and  artists  exhibited  their  masterpieces. 
The  extraordinary  honors  accorded  to  the  victors  stimulated  the 
contestants  to  the  utmost,  and  strung  to  the  highest  tension  every 
power  of  body  and  mind.^  Particularly  were  the  games  promotive 
of  sculpture,  since  they  afforded  the  sculptor  living  models  for  his 

1  As  among  ourselves,  however,  athleticism  among  the  ancient  Greeks  was  often 
carried  to  a  very  irrational  and  harmful  extreme.  For  some  interesting  facts  in  re- 
gard to  the  influence  of  the  excessive  devotion  of  the  Hellenic  athlete  to  physical 
training  upon  his  intellectual  development,  see  letter  by  James  D.  Butler  on 
"  Olympian  Athletes  "  in  the  Nation  of  December  6, 1894,  p.  424.  Cf.  Gardner,  Nezv 
Chapters  in  Greek  History,  pp.  300-4,  quoted  in  p  irt  in  the  Nation,  December  13, 
1894,  p.  442. 


THE  AMPHICTYONIC   COUNCIL.  53 

art  (see  Fig.  14).  "Without  the  Olympic  games,"  says  Hohn, 
"we  should  never  have  had  Greek  sculpture." 

They  moreover  promoted  intercourse  and  trade ;  for  the  festi- 
vals naturally  became  great  centres  of  traffic  and  exchange  during 
the  progress  of  the  games.  They  softened,  too,  the  manners  of 
the  people,  turning  their  thoughts  from  martial  exploits  and 
giving  the  states  respite  from  war ;  for  during  the  season  in  which 
the  religious  games  were  held  it  was  sacrilegious  to  engage  in 
military  expeditions. 

They  also  promoted  intercourse  between  the  different  Grecian 
cities,  or  states,  and  kept  alive  common  Hellenic  feelings  and  sen- 
timents. In  all  these  ways,  though  they  never  drew  the  states 
into  a  common  pohtical  union,  still  they  did  impress  a  common 
character  upon  their  social,  intellectual,  and  religious  hfe.^ 

The  Amphictyonic  Council.  —  Closely  connected  with  the  re- 
ligious festivals  were  the  so-called  Amphictyonies,  or  "  leagues  of 
neighbors,"  which  formed  another  important  part  of  the  bequest 
from  the  legendary  age  to  historic  Greece.  These  were  associa- 
tions of  a  number  of  cities  or  tribes  for  the  celebration  of  religious 
rites  at  some  shrine,  or  for  the  protection  of  some  particular 
temple. 

Pre-eminent  among  all  such  unions  was  that  known  as  the 
Delphic  Amphictyony,  or  simply  The  Amphictyony,  which  was 
fabled  to  have  been  instituted  by  the  hero  Amphictyon,  a  pre- 
historic king  of  Attica.  This  was  a  league  of  twelve  of  the  sub- 
tribes  of  Hellas,  whose  main  object  was  the  protection  of  the 
Temple  of  Apollo  at  Delphi.  Another  of  its  purposes  was,  by 
humane  regulations,  to  mitigate  the  cruelties  of  war.  This  was 
one  of  the  first  steps  taken  in  the  practice  of  international  law. 
The  following  oath  was  taken  by  the  members  of  the  league  :  "  We 
will  not  destroy  any  Amphictyonic  town,  nor  cut  it  off  from  running 

1  It  is  announced  that  the  Olympian  games,  after  having  been  suspended  since 
the  fourth  century  of  our  era,  are  to  be  revived.  The  contests,  which  it  is  proposed 
to  make  international  in  character,  will  probably  take  place  next  year  (1896)  on  the 
ancient  plain  of  Elis  and  under  the  presidency  of  the  Duke  of  Sparta,  the  heir  to 
the  Greek  throne. 


54        THE  INHERITANCE    OE   THE  HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

water,  in  war  or  in  peace ;  if  any  one  shall  do  so,  we  will  march 
against  him  and  destroy  his  city.  If  any  one  shall  plunder  the 
property  of  the  god,  or  shall  be  cognizant  thereof,  or  shall  take 
treacherous  counsel  against  the  things  in  his  temple  at  Delphi,  we 
will  punish  him  with  foot  and  hand  and  voice,  and  by  every  means 
in  our  power." 

Another  duty  of  the  Amphictyonic  tribes  was  to  keep  in  repair 
the  roads  leading  to  the  Delphian  sanctuary.  These  were  care- 
fully levelled,  and  in  rocky  places  smooth  grooves  of  uniform 
gauge  were  cut  for  the  wheels  of  the  chariots  and  gayly  decorated 
cars  which  went  up  in  festival  procession  to  the  games. 

The  Amphictyons  appear  several  times  prominently  in  the 
history  of  Greece.  They  waged  in  behalf  of  the  Delphic  god 
Apollo  a  number  of  crusades,  or  sacred  wars.  The  first  of  these 
occurred  at  the  opening  of  the  sixth  century  b.c.  (probably  about 
595-586),  and  was  carried  on  against  the  Phocian  towns  of  Crissa 
and  Cirrha,  whose  inhabitants  had  been  guilty  of  annoying  the 
pilgrims  on  their  way  to  the  shrine.  The  cities  were  finally  taken 
and  levelled  to  the  ground,  and  the  wrath  of  the  gods  was  invoked 
upon  any  one  who  should  dare  to  rebuild  them.  Their  territory  was 
also  consecrated  to  the  gods,  which  meant  that  it  was  never  there- 
after to  be  plowed  or  planted,  or  in  any  way  devoted  to  secular 
use.  At  the  same  time  the  musical  contests,  which  from  time  to 
time  had  taken  place  at  Delphi  in  honor  of  Apollo,  were  ex- 
panded and  given  national  significance. 

Doctrine  of  Divine  Jealousy.  —  Several  religious  or  semi- 
religious  ideas,  which  were  a  bequest  to  the  historic  Greeks  from 
primitive  times,  colored  so  deeply  all  their  conceptions  of  life, 
and  supplied  them  so  often  with  motives  of  action,  that  we  must 
not  fail  to  take  notice  of  them  here.  These  ideas  related  to  the 
envious  disposition  of  the  gods,  the  nature  of  the  life  after  death, 
and  the  inviolable  character  of  the  suppliant. 

The  Greeks  were  deeply  impressed,  as  all  peoples  and  genera- 
tions have  been,  by  the  vicissitudes  of  life.  Their  observation 
and  experience  had  taught  them  that  long-continued  or  unusuaL 


THE   SUPPLIANT,  55 

prosperity  often  issues  at  last  in  sudden  and  overwhelming 
calamity.  They  attributed  this  to  the  jealousy  of  the  gods,  who, 
they  imagined,  were  envious  of  mortals  that  through  such  pros- 
perity seemed  to  have  become  too  much  Hke  one  of  themselves. 
Thus  the  Greeks  believed  the  downfall  of  Croesus,  after  his 
extraordinary  course  of  uninterrupted  prosperity,  to  have  been 
brought  about  by  the  envy  of  the  celestials,  and  they  colored  the 
story  to  bear  out  this  version  of  the  matter  (p.  131). 

Later,  as  the  ethical  feelings  of  the  Greeks  became  truer,  this 
idea  of  the  divine  envy  was  moralized  into  a  conception  of  the 
righteous  mdignation  of  the  gods,  aroused  by  the  insolence  and 
presumptuous  pride  so  inevitably  engendered  by  over-great  pros- 
perity (see  ch.  xxix.). 

The  Suppliant.  —  The  Greeks  of  the  Heroic  Age  looked  upon 
the  suppliant  as  specially  sacred,  and  this  feehng  they  transmitted 
to  later  times.  Whoso  did  the  suppliant  an  injury,  or  even 
hardened  his  heart  against  his  appeal,  him  the  gods  punished  with 
surest  vengeance. 

But  only  through  certain  formalities  could  one  avail  himself  of 
the  rights  of  a  suppliant.  Should  one,  upon  the  commission  of  a 
crime,  flee  to  a  temple,  he  became  a  supphant  of  the  god  to 
whose  altar  he  clung,  and  to  harm  him  there  was  a  most  awful 
desecration  of  the  shrine.  The  gods  punished  with  dreadful 
severity  such  impiety,  and  an  inexpiable  curse  rested  upon  the 
house  of  the  offender,  while  awful  calamities  were  sure  to  fall 
upon  the  city  or  community  that  tolerated  the  presence  of  the 
accursed.^ 

To  sit  or  kneel  at  the  hearth  of  an  enemy  was  also  a  most  sol- 
emn form  of  supphcation.  An  olive  branch  borne  in  the  hand 
was  still  another  form  of  supplication,  which  rendered  especially 
inviolable  the  person  of  him  who  thus  appealed  for  clemency. 

We  must  here  add,  in  order  to  anticipate  the  perplexity  that 
might  otherwise  trouble  the  reader,  that  the  harsh  doctrine  men- 
tioned above  of  the  inexpiable  and  hereditary  character  of  certain 

1  See  p.  109,  n.  2. 


56       THE   INHERITANCE    OF   THE   HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

crimes,  was  finally,  like  the  idea  of  the  Divine  Jealousy,  softened 
and  moralized,  and  that  it  came  to  be  believed  that  by  certain 
rites  of  purification  full  atonement  might  be  made  for  personal  or 
ancestral  guilt,  and  thus  the  workings  of  the  original  curse  be 
stayed. 

Ideas  of  the  Future.  —  To  the  Greeks  life  was  so  bright  and 
joyous  a  thing  that  they  looked  upon  death  as  a  great  calamity. 
They  therefore  pictured  life  after  death,  except  in  the  case  of  a 
favored  few,  as  being  hopeless  and  aimless.^  The  Elysian  Fields, 
away  in  th'e  land  of  sunset,  were,  indeed,  filled  with  every  delight ; 
but  these  were  the  abode  only  of  the  great  heroes  and  benefactors 
of  the  race.  The  great  mass  of  mankind  were  doomed  to  Hades, 
where  the  spirit  existed  as  "  a  feeble,  joyless  phantom."  While 
we  believe  that  the  soul,  freed  from  the  body  by  the  event  of 
death,  becomes  stronger  and  more  active,  the  Greeks  thought 
that  without  the  body  it  became  but  a  feeble  image  of  its  former 
self.  So  long  as  the  body  remained  unburied,  the  shade  wandered 
without  rest ;  hence  the  sacredness  of  the  rights  of  sepulture. 

3.    Language,  Mythology,  Literature,  and  Art. 

The  Greek  Language.  —  One  of  the  most  wonderful  things 
which  the  Greeks  brought  out  of  their  dim  foretime  was  their 
language.  At  the  beginning  of  the  historic  period  their  language 
was  already  one  of  the  richest  and  most  perfectly  elaborated 
languages  ever  spoken  by  human  lips.  Through  what  number 
of  centuries  this  language  was  taking  form  upon  the  lips  of  the 
forefathers  of  the  historic  Greeks,  we  can  only  vaguely  imagine. 
It  certainly  bears  testimony  to  a  long  period  of  Hellenic  life  lying 
behind  the  historic  age  in  Hellas,  for  language   is   one   of  the 

1  Homer  makes  the  shade  of  the  great  Achilles  in  Hades  to  say :  — 

"  I  would  be 
A  laborer  on  earth,  and  serve  for  hire 
Some  man  of  mean  estate,  who  makes  scant  cheer, 
Rather  than  reign  o'er  all  who  have  gone  down 
To  death." —  Od,  xi.  489-90  [Bryant's  Trans.}. 


EARLY  GREEK  LITERATURE.  57 

most  slow-growing  of  all  the  varied  products  of  human  experience 
and  feehng.^ 

The  Mythology  of  the  Greeks.  —  Another  wonderful  posses- 
sion of  the  Greeks  when  they  first  appeared  in  history  was  their 
mythology.  All  races  in  the  earlier  stages  of  their  development 
are  "  myth-makers,"  but  no  race  has  ever  created  such  a  rich  and 
beautiful  mythology  as  did  the  ancient  Greeks,  and  this  for  the 
reason  that  no  other  race  was  ever  endowed  with  so  fertile  and 
lively  an  imagination. 

This  mythology  exerted  a  great  influence  upon  the  life  and 
thought  of  the  ancient  Greeks.  Their  rehgion,  their  poetry,  their 
art,  and  their  history  were  one  and  all  deeply  impressed  by  this 
wonderful  collection  of  legends  and  myths.  Some  of  these  stories 
inspired  religious  feeling ;  some  afforded  themes  to  the  epic  and 
tragic  poets ;  others  suggested  subjects  to  the  artists ;  and  still 
others  inspired  the  actors  in  Greek  history  to  many  an  heroic 
deed  or  adventurous  undertaking. 

Early  Greek  Literature:  the  Homeric  Poems.  —  The  rich  and 
flexible  language  of  the  Greeks  had  already  in  prehistoric  times 
been  wrought  into  epic  poems  whose  beauty  and  perfection  are 
unequalled  by  the  similar  productions  of  any  other  people  or  race. 
These  epics  transmitted  from  the  Greek  foretime  are  known  as 
the  "  Homeric  poems,"  consisting  of  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey. 
The  subject  of  the  Iliad  is  the  "  Wrath  of  Achilles,"  and  the 
woes  it  brought  upon  the  Greeks  in  the  Trojan  War.  The  Odys- 
sey tells  of  the  long  wanderings  of  the  hero  Odysseus  up  and 
down  over  many  seas  while  seeking  his  native  Ithaca,  after  the 
downfall  of  Troy. 

Neither  the  date  nor  the  authorship  of  the  Homeric  poems  is 
known.  That  they  were  the  prized  possession  of  the  Greeks  at 
the  beginning  of  the  historical  period  is  all  that  it  is  important  for 
us  to  note  at  the  present  time.  They  were  a  sort  of  Bible  to  the 
Greeks,  and  exerted  an  incalculable  influence  not  only  upon  the 

1  The  Greek  language  belongs  to  what  is  known  as  the  Aryan  family  of  lan- 
guages, and  bears  a  comparatively  close  relationship  to  the  Latin  speech. 


58       THE   INHERITANCE    OE   THE   HISTORIC   GREEKS. 

religious  but  also  upon  the  literary  life  of  the  entire  Hellenic 
world. 

Early  Greek  Art.  —  In  the  field  of  art  the  heritage  of  historic 
Greece  from  the  legendary  age  consisted  rather  in  a  certain  trans- 
mitted esthetic  faculty  than  in  technical  skill.  "The  Homeric 
poetry  was,  indeed,"  says  Professor  Jebb,  "  instinct  with  the 
promises  of  Hellenic  art.  Such  qualities  of  poetical  thought, 
such  forms  of  language,  announced  a  race  from  which  great 
artists  might  be  expected  to  spring.^  .  .  .  The  shield  of  Achilles, 
described  in  the  Iliad,  is  certainly,  as  a  whole,  the  creation  of  the 
poet's  fancy,  indebted  for  details  to  Phoenician,  Egyptian,  and 
perhaps  Assyrian  sources.  Yet  it  illustrates  the  Hellene's  feeling 
for  such  workmanship.  And  a  surer  presage  of  Greek  art  is 
afforded  by  the  sense  which  we  see  in  Homer  of  human  beauty, 
not  merely  in  the  youthful,  but  in  the  aged,  —  as  when  Achilles 
admires  the  comeliness  of  Priam,  —  or  even  the  dead,  as  when 
the  Greeks  gather  round  the  corpse  of  Hector."^ 

These  prophecies  we  shall  see  passing  into  fulfilment  in  the 
ideal  perfection  of  the  art  of  Pheidias  and  Praxiteles. 

References. — Fustel  de  Coulanges,  The  Ancient  City,  books  i.-iii. 
Fowler,  The  City-State  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans^  chs.  i.-iii.  Jowett's 
Aristotle,  Politics.  Botsford,  The  Athenian  Constitution  (Cornell  Studies  in 
Classical  Philology),  pp.  i-ioi.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  i-iii. 
Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  ii.  pp.  1-55  and  164-194; 
ib.  vol.  \\K.  pp.  2'](i-2g'j  ;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  ii.  pp.  57-118  and  236- 
269 ;  ib.  vol.  iv.  pp.  50-73  ;  on  the  national  festivals.  Abbott,  History 
of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  1 38-193  ;  on  the  Homeric  poems  and  the  Homeric 
society  and  deities.  Holm,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  chs.  i.,  xi.,  and  xix. 
Gardner,  New  Chapters  in  Greek  History,  ch.  ix.,  "  Olympia  and  the  Festi- 
vals," and  ch.  xiii.,  "Eleusis  and  the  Mysteries."  Symonds,  Studies  of  the 
Greek  Poets,  vol.  i.  ch.  4,  *'  The  Women  of  Homer."  Diehl,  Excursions 
in  Greece,  ch.  vii. ;  on  the  Grecian  Games.  James  Freeman  Clarke,  Ten 
Great  Religions,  ch.  viii.,  "  The  Gods  of  Greece." 

1 "  When  the  Hellenes  created  the  Epos,  they  were  already  Greeks ;  i.e.  the 
chosen  people  of  poetry  and  art."  —  Perrot  and  Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in 
Primitive  Greece,  vol.  i.  p.  7. 

2  Jebb,  Classical  Greek  Poetry,  pp.  24,  25. 


EARLY  ASCENDENCY  OF  ARGOS:    KING  PHEIDON,      59 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE  RISE  OF  THE  SPARTAN  POWER  IN  THE  PELOPONNESUS. 

The  Early  Ascendency  of  Argos  :  King  Pheidon.  —  We  have 
learned  how,  according  to  Greek  accounts,  the  Dorians,  long 
before  the  historic  period,  invaded  the  Peloponnesus,  and  sub- 
jected or  drove  out  the  greater  part  of  the  Achaean  population 
then  possessing  the  land.  One  result  of  the  invasion  was  the 
establishment  of  a  number  of  Dorian  city-states,  of  which  Sparta, 
in  the  south  of  the  peninsula,  came  in  time  to  be  chief  and  leader. 

But  before  Sparta  acquired  supremacy  in  the  Peloponnesus, 
another  Dorian  city  in  the  north  had  secured,  and  for  a  consider- 
able time  maintained,  a  position  of  pre-eminence.  This  was 
Argos,  which  arose  in  Argolis,  near  the  ruins  of  the  old  Mycenaean 
strongholds.  At  Mycenae,  the  city  of  Agamemnon,  the  Dorian 
conquerors  walked  for  centuries  over  the  graves  of  the  ancient  royal 
race  of  that  city  without  the  least  conception  of  what  treasures  of 
gold  and  silver  were  buried  beneath  their  feet  (p.  25,  n.).  Around 
Argos  were  grouped  a  number  of  smaller  communities,  Dorian  and 
Achaean,  which  held  to  her  the  relation  of  allies  or  of  dependents. 

For  a  long  time  we  see  the  rising  city-state  only  through  the 
mist  of  uncertain  tradition.  Shadowy  forms  of  Argive  kings  move 
before  us,  but  it  is  not  until  the  eighth  century  before  our  era  that 
we  are  able  to  make  out  clearly  the  figure  of  a  single  personage. 
Then  King  Pheidon  stands  out  in  a  light  strong  enough  to  enable 
us  to  pronounce  him  a  man  of  real  flesh  and  blood.^ 

1  The  date  of  Pheidon  is  not  known  with  certainty,  but  probably  it  falls  about 
770-730  B.C.  On  what  seems  insufficient  ground,  some  place  his  date  a  century 
later. 


60  THE  RISE    OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

Several  matters  of  importance  are  connected  by  tradition  with 
the  name  of  Pheidon.  The  royal  power  at  Argos,  which  had  fallen 
low,  he  lifted  up,  and  tightened  all  the  slackened  bonds  of  the  old 
Argive  confederacy.  Such  was  the  reputed  arbitrariness  of  his 
rule  that  he  acquired  among  the  later  Greeks  the  reputation  of 
having  been  the  most  insolent  and  violent  of  all  Hellenic  tyrants. 

In  the  year  748  b.c.  Pheidon  aided  the  inhabitants  of  Pisa,  a 
city  in  Ehs,  in  getting  possession  of  the  sanctuary  at  Olympia, 
from  the  guardianship  of  which  they  had  been  ejected  by  the 
Eleans,  and  then  in  connection  with  the  Pisatans  presided  at 
the  celebration  of  the  games  of  the  Eighth  Olympiad.  Before 
the  next  festival  came  around,  however,  the  Eleans  had  repos- 
sessed themselves  of  the  sacred  spot.  This  matter  is  of  value  as 
showing  at  once  the  importance  which  the  Olympian  games  had 
already  at  this  date  attained,  and  the  real  ascendency  at  the  same 
period  of  the  city  of  Argos. 

But  the  most  noteworthy  matter  associated  with  the  name  of 
Pheidon  connects  itself  with  the  economic  Hfe  of  the  times.  He 
is  said  to  have  been  the  first  to  coin  copper  and  silver  in  Greece, 
and  to  have  introduced  a  new  or  improved  scale  of  weights  and 
measures.  This  coinage  and  standard  were  known  as  the  Phei- 
donian  or  ^ginetan,  from  the  circumstance  that  Pheidon's  mint 
was  in  ^gina.  These  scales  and  measures  came  to  be  used  very 
generally  in  the  Dorian  cities  of  Greece  proper  and  the  islands  of 
the  ^gean.^ 

The  Pheidonian  system  of  coinage,  weights,  and  measures  was 
of  Babylonian  origin,^  and  undoubtedly  came  into  Greece  through 
the  mediation  of  the  Phoenicians.     Its  introduction  into  Greece 

1  There  was  another  coinage,  known  as  the  Euboean,  which  was  adopted  by 
Corinth,  Athens,  the  cities  of  Eubcea,  and  other  states.  This  standard  probably 
found  its  way  into  Greece  from  the  lonians  of  Asia,  who  got  it  from  Babylon. 

2  "  The  Babylonian  talent,  mina,  and  drachma  are  identical  with  the  [^ginetan] : 
the  word  mina  and  drachma  are  identical  with  the  [^ginetan]  :  the  word  mina  is  of 
Asiatic  origin  ;  and  it  has  now  been  rendered  highly  probable  that  the  scale  circu- 
lated by  Pheidon  was  borrowed  immediately  from  the  Phoenicians,  and  by  them 
originally  from  the  Babylonians."  —  Grote,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  p.  241. 


THE   LOCATTOM   OF  SPARTA.  61 

by  Pheidon,  and  its  extended  use  in  the  Dorian  states,  show 
how  real  must  have  been  at  this  time  the  ascendency  of  Argos, 
how  trade  and  commerce  were  springing  up  between  the  states  of 
Greece,  and  how  deep  an  influence  the  civilization  of  the  East 
was  at  this  early  period  exerting  upon  the  rising  cities  of  Hellas. 

After  Pheidon,  Argos  sank  into  comparative  obscurity.  In  the 
sixth  century  she  was  overshadowed,  close  at  home,  by  the  rising 
Dorian  cities  of  Corinth  and  Sicyon,  and  especially  by  the  grow- 
ing Spartan  power  in  the  southwest  of  the  peninsula.  From  early 
times  there  had  been  friction  between  Argos  and  Sparta,  and 
finally  in  the  century  mentioned  the  Spartan  king  Cleomenes  by 
a  single  terrible  blow  (p.  73)  crippled  forever  the  power  of  the 
rival  state.  After  this,  Argos  played,  in  the  main,  only  an  obscure 
part  in  the  affairs  of  Greece. 

The  Location  of  Sparta.  —  Sparta,  the  most  renowned  after 
Athens  of  the  cities  of  Hellas,  was  the  chief  of  the  Dorian  cities 
of  the  Peloponnesus  which  owed  their  origin  or  importance  to  the 
circumstances  of  the  Dorian  invasion.  It  was  situated  in  the 
deep  valley  of  the  Eurotas,  in  Laconia,  about  thirty  miles  from 
the  sea.  At  this  point  the  river  valley  widens  into  a  plain  about 
eighteen  miles  in  length  by  four  in  breadth,  which  forms  a  sort  of 
irregular  amphitheatre,  shut  in  by  high  and  rugged  mountain  walls. 
This  plain,  thus  sunk  deep  among  the  hills  of  Laconia,  was  called 
by  the  ancients,  as  already  noticed,  "  Hollow  Lacedaemon."  ^  The 
settlement  estabHshed  here  by  the  invading  Dorians  took  its  name, 
Sparta,^  from  the  circumstance  that  the  village  or  group  of  villages 
was  built  upon  tillable  ground,  whereas  the  core  of  most  Greek 
cities  consisted  of  a  lofty  rock  or  acropolis.  But  Sparta  needed 
no  citadel.  Her  situation,  surrounded  as  she  was  by  almost 
impassable  mountain  barriers,  and  far  removed  from  the  sea,  was 
her  sufficient  defense.  Indeed,  the  Spartans  seem  to  have  thought 
it  unnecessary  even  to  erect  a  wall  round  their  city,  which  stood 
open  on  every  side  until  late  and  degenerate  times.     And  events 

1  Greek  fable  makes  the  name  Lacedaemon  to  come  from  an  early  king  of  the  land. 

2  STrapri),  sown  land. 


62  THE  RISE    OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

justified  this  feeling  of  security.  So  difficult  of  access  by  an 
enemy  is  the  valley,  that  during  more  than  four  hundred  years  of 
Spartan  history  the  waters  of  the  Eurotas  never  once  reflected  the 
camp  fires  of  an  invading  army. 

Classes  in  the  Spartan  State.  —  Before  proceeding  to  speak 
of  the  social  and  political  institutions  of  the  Spartans,  we  must 
first  notice  the  three  classes — Spartans  (Spartiatae),  Perioeci,  and 
Helots  —  into  which  the  population  of  Laconia  was  divided. 

The  Spartans  proper  were  the  descendants  of  the  conquerors 
of  the  country,  and  were  Dorian  in  race  and  language.  They 
composed  but  a  small  fraction  of  the  entire  population,  at  no 
period  numbering  more  than  ten  thousand  men  capable  of  bearing 
arms. 

The  Perioeci  (dwellers  around),  who  constituted  the  second 
class,  were  the  subjugated  natives.  They  are  said  to  have  out- 
numbered the  Spartans  three  to  one.  They  were  allowed  to 
retain  possession  of  their  lands,  but  were  forced  to  pay  tribute- 
rent,  and  in  times  of  war  to  fight  for  the  glory  and  interest  of 
their  Spartan  masters. 

The  third  and  lowest  class  was  composed  of  slaves,  or  serfs, 
called  Helots.  The  larger  number  of  these  were  laborers  upon 
the  estates  of  the  Spartans.  They  were  the  property  of  the  state, 
and  not  of  the  individual  Spartan  lords,  among  whom  they  were 
distributed  by  lot. 

These  Helots  had  no  rights,  practically,  which  their  Spartan 
masters  felt  bound  to  respect.  If  one  of  their  number  displayed 
unusual  powers  of  body  or  mind,  he  was  secretly  assassinated,  as 
it  was  deemed  unsafe  to  allow  such  qualities  to  be  fostered  in  this 
servile  class.  It  is  affirmed  that  when  the  Helots  grew,  too 
numerous  for  the  safety  of  the  state,  their  numbers  were  thinned 
by  a  dehberate  massacre  of  the  surplus  population.^ 

1  "  Once,  when  they  [the  Spartans]  were  afraid  of  the  number  ^nd  vigour  of  the 
Helot  youth,  this  was  what  they  did  :  They  proclaimed  that  a  selection  would  be 
made  of  those  Helots  who  claimed  to  have  rendered  the  best  service  to  the 
Lacedaemonians  in  war,  and  promised  them   liberty.    The  announcement  was 


EARLY   TRADITIONAL   HISTORY  OF  SPARTA.  63 

Early  Traditional  History  of  Sparta  :  the  Legend  of  Lycurgus. 

—  Of  the  history  of  Sparta  before  the  First  Olympiad  we  have  no 
certain  knowledge.  Legend  indeed  busies  itself  with  the  affairs  of 
the  Httle  state  in  this  remote  time,  and  tells  of  various  conquests 
by  Spartan  kings,  and  of  inner  dissensions  which  kept  the  com- 
munity in  unending  turmoil.  Peace,  prosperity  and  rapid  growth, 
according  to  the  tradition,  were  secured  to  the  distracted  state 
through  the  adoption  of  a  most  remarkable  poUtical  constitution 
framed  by  a  great  lawgiver  named  Lycurgus.^ 

Legend  represents  Lycurgus  as  having  fitted  himself  for  his 
great  work  through  an  acquaintance,  by  converse  with  priests  and 
sages,  with  the  laws  and  institutions  of  different  lands.  He  is  said 
to  have  studied  with  zeal  the  laws  of  Minos,  the  legendary  law- 
giver of  Crete ;  to  have  become  learned,  Uke  the  legislator  Moses, 
in  all  the  wisdom  of  the  Egyptians ;  and  even  to  have  journeyed 
as  far  as  India  and  have  sat  as  a  disciple  at  the  feet  of  the  Brah- 
mans.  Another  account,  however,  relates  that  his  entire  system 
of  laws  was  revealed  to  him  by  the  Delphian  oracle.^ 

Upon  the  return  of  Lycurgus  to  Sparta, — we  still  follow  the  tra- 
dition, —  his  learning  and  wisdom  soon  made  him  the  leader  of  a 
strong  party.  After  much  opposition,  a  system  of  laws  and  regu- 
lations drawn  up  by  him  was  adopted  by  the  Spartan  people. 
Then,  binding  his  countrymen  by  a  solemn  oath  that  they  would 
carefully  observe  his  laws  during  his  absence,  he  set  out  on  a  pil- 
grimage to  Delphi.  In  response  to  his  inquiry,  the  oracle  assured 
him  that  Sparta  would  endure  and  prosper  as  long  as  the  people 
obeyed  the  laws  he  had  given  them.     Lycurgus  caused  this  answer 

intended  to  test  them  ;  it  was  thought  that  those  among  them  who  were  foremost  in 
asserting  their  freedom  would  be  most  high-spirited,  and  most  Hkely  to  rise  against 
their  masters.  So  they  selected  about  two  thousand,  who  were  crowned  with  gar- 
lands and  went  in  procession  round  the  temples ;  they  were  supposed  to  have 
received  their  liberty;  but  not  long  afterwards  the  Spartans  put  them  all  out  of  the 
way,  and  no  man  knew  how  any  one  of  them  came  by  his  end."  —  Jowett's 
Thucydides,  iv.  80. 

1  The  date  of  Lycurgus  falls  somewhere  in  the  ninth  century  B.C.,  probably  near 
its  close.  .. 

2Herod.  i.  65. 


64  THE   RISE   OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

to  be  carried  to  his  countrymen ;  and  then,  that  they  might 
remain  bound  by  the  oath  they  had  taken,  resolved  never  to  re- 
turn. He  went  into  an  unknown  exile.  Three  lands  claimed  to 
hold  his  dust ;  and  the  Spartans  in  after  years  gratefully  perpetu- 
ated his  memory  by  temples  and  sacrifices  in  his  honor. 

Criticism  of  the  Legend.  —  It  is  probable  that  Lycurgus  was  a 
real  person,  and  that  he  had  something  to  do  with  shaping  the 
Spartan  constitution.  But  it  is  almost  certain  that  he  simply 
reformed  a  constitution  already  in  existence  :  for  it  is  a  proverb 
that  constitutions  grow  and  are  not  made.  Circumstances,  doubt- 
less, were  in  the  main  the  real  creator  of  the  peculiar  political 
institutions  of  Sparta  —  the  circumstances  that  surrounded  a  small 
band  of  conquerors  in  the  midst  of  a  large  and  subject  population. 
Nor  were  they  the  creation  of  an  hour  —  the  fruit  of  a  happy 
inspiration.  All  the  events  of  the  early  conquest,  all  the  toils, 
dangers,  and  hardships  which  the  Dorian  warriors  endured  in  the 
subjugation  of  the  land,  and  all  the  prudence  and  watchfulness 
necessary  to  the  maintenance  of  themselves  in  the  position  of  con- 
querors, helped,  we  may  believe,  to  determine  the  unusual  military 
character  of  the  laws  and  regulations  of  the  Spartan  state. 

The  work  of  Lycurgus,  then,  was  not  that  of  a  new  creation. 
His  mission  was  that  of  a  wise  and  far-seeing  statesman,  whose 
task  it  is  to  "  modify  and  shape  already  existing  habits  and  cus- 
toms into  rule  and  law  "  ;  to  make  additions  and  improvements ; 
to  anticipate  needs  and  tendencies.  The  very  fact  that  the  legis- 
lation of  Lycurgus  was  adopted  and  became  the  system  of  a  state, 
shows  that  it  must  have  been  essentially  the  outgrowth  of  customs 
and  regulations  already  familiar,  and  consequently  acceptable  to 
at  least  a  large  party  among  the  Spartans.^ 

The  Spartan  Constitution :  the  Kings :  the  Senate :  and  the 
General  Assembly.  —  From  what  has  already  been  said  of  the 

1  Holm  says :  "  No  people  accepts  the  position  of  the  Spartans  without  special 
constraint.  This  constraint  was  imposed  by  the  legislator  whom  the  ancients  called 
Lycurgus."  —  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  i88, 189.  But  with  better  reason  we  may 
say  that  this  restraint  was  imposed  by  the  conditions  under  which  the  Spartan 
community  existed. 


THE   SPARTAN   CONSTITUTION.  65 

obscurity  of  the  early  history  of  Sparta,  the  reader  will  not  look 
for  any  account  of  the  development  of  the  Spartan  constitution. 
The  story  of  its  growth  is  really  unknown.  What  follows  is  simply 
a  description  of  the  main  features  that  it  presented  in  later 
historic  times. 

The  constitution  provided  for  two  joint  kings,  a  Senate  of 
Elders,  a  General  Assembly,  and  a  sort  of  executive  board  com- 
posed of  five  persons  called  Ephors. 

The  two  kings  corresponded  in  some  respects  to  the  two 
Consuls  in  the  later  Roman  republic.^  One  served  as  a  check 
upon  the  other.  This  double  sovereignty  worked  admirably ;  for 
five  centuries  there  was  no  successful  attempt  on  the  part  of  a 
Spartan  king  to  subvert  the  constitution.  The  power  of  the  joint 
kings,  it  should  be  added,  came  to  be  rather  nominal  than  real 
(save  in  time  of  war)  ;  so  that  while  the  Spartan  government  was 
a  monarchy  in  form,  it  in  reality  was  an  aristocracy,  or  rather 
oligarchy,  corresponding  very  closely  in  many  respects  to  the 
feudal  aristocracy  of  mediaeval  Europe. 

The  Senate  {gerousia)  consisted  of  twenty-eight  elders.  The 
two  co-ordinate  kings  were  also  members,  thus  raising  the  number 
to  thirty.  The  duties  of  the  body  seem  to  have  been  of  a  judicial 
and  legislative  character.  No  one  could  become  a  senator  until 
he  had  reached  the  age  of  sixty.  The  mode  of  election,  accord- 
ing to  Plutarch,  was  peculiar.  The  committee  who  were  to  decide 
between  the  candidates  were  confined  in  a  chamber  near  the 
public  assembling  place,  where,  without  seeing  what  was  going  on, 
they  might  hear  the  clamor  of  the  people.  Then  the  candidates 
were  presented  to  the  meeting,  one  by  one,  and  the  partisans  of 
each  greeted  their  favorite  with  great  and  prolonged  applause. 

1  Various  explanations  are  given  of  the  origin  of  this  dual  monarchy.  One 
theory  supposes  one  king  to  represent  the  Achaean  race  and  the  other  the  Dorian ; 
a  second  assumes  that  the  double  monarchy  arose  from  the  union  of  two 
Dorian  settlements;  while  still  a  third  regards  the  two  kings  as  representing 
two  leading  families  at  Sparta,  whose  rival  claims  to  tlie  throne  were  accommo- 
dated by  raising  a  member  of  each  to  the  royal  dignity.  See  Abbott,  History  of 
Greece^  vol.  i.  pp.  206,  207. 


66  THE  RISE    OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

It  was  the  duty  of  the  committee  to  decide  which  candidate  had 
been  received  with  the  greatest  enthusiasm  and  uproar,  and  he 
was  declared  the  people's  choice.^    The  proceedings  in  our  own. 
political  nominating  conventions  are  not  very  dissimilar  to  this 
usage  of  the  Spartan  assembly. 

The  Apella,  or  General  Assembly,  was  composed  of  all  the  citi- 
zens of  Sparta  over  thirty  years  of  age.  By  this  body  laws  were 
made,  and  questions  of  peace  and  war  decided ;  but  nothing 
could  be  brought  before  it  save  such  matters  as  the  Senate  had 
previously  decided  might  be  entertained  by  it.  It  was  by  this 
assembly  that  the  senators  were  elected  in  the  manner  above 
described. 

In  striking  contrast  to  the  custom  at  Athens,  all  matters  were 
decided  without  general  debate,  only  the  magistrates  and  persons 
specially  invited  being  allowed  to  address  the  assembly.  The 
Spartans  were  fighters,  not  talkers ;  they  hated  windy  discussion. 
As  in  the  case  of  the  elections  to  the  Senate,  the  decision  of  the 
assembly  respecting  any  measure  was  generally  made  known  by 
acclamation.  Sometimes,  however,  measures  of  special  import- 
ance were  decided  by  vote. 

The  board  of  Ephors  was  composed,  as  we  have  noticed,  of 
five  persons,  elected  in  some  way  not  known  to  us.  This  body 
gradually  drew  to  itself  many  of  the  powers  and  functions  of  the 
Senate,  as  well  as  much  of  the  authority  of  the  associate  kings. 

Regulations  as  to  Land,  Trade,  and  Money.  —  Plutarch  says 
that  Lycurgus,  seeing  that  the  lands  had  fallen  largely  into  the 
hands  of  the  rich,  made  a  general  redistribution  of  them,  allotting 
an  equal  portion  to  each  of  the  nine  thousand  Spartan  citizens, 
and  a  smaller  and  less  desirable  portion  to  each  of  the  thirty 
thousand  Perioeci.  It  is  not  probable  that  there  ever  was  such 
an  exact  redivision  and  equalization  of  landed  property.  The 
Spartan  theory,  it  is  true,  seems  to  have  been  that  every  free  man 
should  possess  a  farm  large  enough  to  support  him  without  work, 
so  that  he  might  give  himself  wholly  to  his  duties  as  a  citizen ; 

1  Plut,  Lycurgus,  26. 


THE'  PUBLIC   TABLES.  67 

but  as  a  matter  of  fact  there  existed,  at  certain  periods  at  least, 
great  inequality  in  landed  possessions  among  the  Spartans.  In 
the  fourth  century,  according  to  Plutarch,  not  more  than  one 
hundred  of  the  citizens  held  any  land. 

The  Spartans  were  forbidden  to  engage  in  commerce  or  to  pursue 
any  trade  ;  all  their  time  must  be  passed  in  the  chase,,  or  in  gym- 
nastic and  martial  exercises.  Iron  was  made  the  sole  money  of 
the  state.  This  money,  as  described  by  Plutarch,  was  so  heavy 
in  proportion  to  its  value  that  the  amount  needed  to  make  a 
trifling  purchase  required  a  yoke  of  oxen  to  draw  it.  The  object 
of  Lycurgus  in  instituting  such  a  currency  was,  we  are  told,  to 
prevent  its  being  used  for  the  purchase  of  worthless  foreign  stuff.^ 

The  Public  Tables.  —  The  most  pecuhar,  perhaps,  of  the 
Spartan  institutions  were  the  public  meals  {syssitia).  In  order 
to  correct  the  extravagance  with  which  the  tables  of  the  rich  were 
often  spread,  Lycurgus  is  said  to  have  ordered  that  all  the  citizens 
should  eat  at  public  and  common  tables.  This  was  their  custom, 
but  Lycurgus  could  have  had  nothing  to  do  with  instituting  it.  It 
was  part  of  their  military  Hfe.  Every  citizen  was  required  to  con- 
tribute to  these  common  meals  a  certain  amount  of  flour,  fruit, 
game,  or  pieces  from  the  sacrifices ;  if  any  one  failed  to  pay  his 
contribution,  he  was  degraded  and  disfranchised.  Excepting  the 
Ephors,  none,  not  even  the  kings,  was  excused  from  sitting  at  the 
common  mess.  One  of  the  kings,  returning  from  a  long  expedi- 
tion, presumed  to  dine  privately  with  his  wife,  but  received  there- 
for a  severe  reproof. 

A  luxury-loving  Athenian  once  visited  Sparta  and  seeing  the 
coarse  fare  of  the  citizens,  which  seems  to  have  consisted  in  the 
main  of  a  nauseous  black  broth,  is  reported  to  have  declared  that 

iThe  real  truth  about  this  iron  money  is  simply  this:  The  conservative,  non- 
trading  Spartans  retained  longer  than  the  other  Grecian  states  the  use  of  a  primi- 
tive medium  of  exchange.  Gold  and  silver  money  was  not  introduced  into  Sparta 
until  about  the  close  of  the  fifth  century  B.C.,  when  the  great  expansion  of  her 
interests  rendered  a  change  in  her  money-system  absolutely  necessary.  In  refer- 
ring the  establishment  of  the  early  currency  to  Lycurgus,  the  Spartans  simply  did 
in  this  case  just  what  they  did  in  regard  to  their  other  usages. 


68  THE  RISE    OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

now  he  understood  the  Spartan  disregard  of  life  in  battle  :  "  Any 
one,"  said  he,  "  must  naturally  prefer  death  to  life  on  such  fare  as 
this." 

Education  of  the  Youth.  —  Children  at  Sparta  were  regarded 
as  belonging  to  the  state.  Every  male  infant  was  brought  before 
the  Council  of  Elders,  and  if  it  did  not  seem  Hkely  to  become  a 
robust  and  useful  citizen,  was  exposed  in  a  mountain  glen.  At 
seven  the  education  and  training  of  the  youth  were  committed 
to  the  charge  of  public  officers,  called  boy-trainers.  The  aim  of 
the  entire  course  was  to  make  a  nation  of  soldiers  who  should 
despise  toil  and  danger  and  prefer  death  to  military  dishonor. 
The  mind  was  cultivated  only  as  far  as  might  contribute  to  the 
main  object  of  the  system.  Reading  and  writing  were  untaught, 
and  the  art  of  rhetoric  was  despised.  Only  martial  poems  were 
recited.  The  Spartans  had  a  profound  contempt  for  the  subtleties 
and  Uterary  acquirements  of  the  Athenians.  Spartan  brevity  was 
a  proverb,  whence  our  word  laconic^  implying  a  concise  and  pithy 
mode  of  expression.  Boys  were  taught  to  respond  in  the  fewest 
words  possible.  At  the  public  tables  they  were  not  permitted  to 
speak  until  questioned  :  they  sat  "  silent  as  statues."  As  Plutarch 
puts  it,  "  Lycurgus  was  for  having  the  money  bulky,  heavy,  and  of 
little  value ;  and  the  language,  on  the  contrary,  very  pithy  and 
short,  and  a  great  deal  of  sense  compressed  in  a  few  words." 

But  while  the  mind  was  neglected,  the  body  was  carefully  trained. 
In  running,  leaping,  wrestling,  and  hurling  the  spear  the  Spartans 
acquired  the  most  surprising  nimbleness  and  dexterity.  At  the 
Olympian  games  Spartan  champions  more  frequently  than  any 
others  bore  off  the  prizes  of  victory. 

But  before  all  things  else  was  the  Spartan  youth  taught  to  bear 
pain  unflinchingly.  He  was  inured  to  the  cold  of  winter  by  being 
forced  to  pass  through  that  season  with  only  the  light  dress  of 
summer.  His  bed  was  a  bundle  of  river  reeds.  Sometimes  he 
was  placed  before  the  altar  of  Artemis,  and  scourged  just  for  the 
purpose  of  accustoming  his  body  to  pain.     Frequently,  it  is  said, 

1  From  Laconia. 


THE   SPARTAN  CONQUEST   OF  MESSENIA.  69 

boys  died  under  the  lash,  without  reveahng  their  suffering  by  look 
or  moan. 

Another  custom  tended  to  the  same  end  as  the  foregoing  usage. 
The  boys  were  at  times  compelled  to  forage  for  their  food.  If 
detected,  they  were  severely  punished  for  having  been  so  unskilful 
as  not  to  get  safely  away  with  their  booty.  This  custom,  as  well  as 
the  fortitude  of  the  Spartan  youth,  is  familiar  to  all  through  the 
story  of  the  boy  who,  having  stolen  a  young  fox  and  concealed  it 
beneath  his  tunic,  allowed  the  animal  to  tear  out  his  vitals,  without 
betraying  himself  by  the  movement  of  a  muscle. 

The  Cryptia,  which  has  been  represented  as  an  organization  of 
young  Spartans  who  were  permitted,  as  a  means  of  rendering  them- 
selves ready  and  expert  in  war,  to  hunt  and  kill  the  Helots,  seems 
in  reaHty  to  have  been  a  sort  of  police  institution,  designed  to 
guard  against  the  uprising  of  the  serfs. 

The  Spartan  Conquest  of  Messenia:  the  First  and  Second 
Messenian  Wars  (about  743-723  and  645-631  b.c).  —  After 
the  era  of  the  Lycurgean  legislation  Sparta  rose  quickly  to  a  place 
of  undisputed  pre-eminence  among  the  states  of  the  Peloponnesus. 
This  rapid  growth  of  her  power  is  attributable,  without  doubt,  to 
her  well-framed  constitution  and  her  remarkable  military  discipline. 

The  first  efforts  of  the  reformed  state  were  directed  to  the  con- 
quest of  the  places  in  Laconia  still  in  the  hands  of  the  non-Dorian 
population.^  In  a  short  time  the  Spartans  had  gained  possession 
of  the  whole  course  of  the  Eurotas  from  Sparta  to  the  sea,  and 
had  completely  subjected  the  inhabitants  of  every  portion  of  the 
Laconian  district.  The  conquered  peoples  were  made  either 
vassals  or  serfs. 

With  their  power  firmly  established  in  Laconia,  the  Spartans 
turned  their  arms  against  the  Messenians.  Messenia  was  one  of 
those  districts  of  the  Peloponnesus  which,  like  Laconia,  had  been 
taken  possession  of  by  Dorian  bands  at  the  time  of  the  great 
invasion.     It  was  the  most  pleasant  and  fertile  of  all  the  Pelopon- 

1  The  Spartans  must  have  held  as  conquerors  a  part  at  least  of  Laconia  before 
the  Lycurgean  legislation,  since  its  character  presupposes  this  condition  of  things. 


70  THE   RISE    OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

nesian  districts  which  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Dorians.  Here 
the  intruding  Dorians,  contrary  to  what  was  the  case  in  Laconia, 
had  mingled  with  the  native  population  to  form  a  new  mixed  race. 

The  real  cause  of  the  war  that  now  broke  out  between  the 
Spartans  and  the  Messenians  was  probably  Spartan  lust  of  conquest. 
The  occasion  is  said  to  have  been  some  border  trouble  about  some 
cattle  or  other  petty  matter.  The  struggle  falls  into  two  periods, 
the  so-called  First  and  Second  Messenian  Wars  (about  743-723 
and  645-631  B.C.).  Of  these  early  wars  of  Sparta  the  accounts  are 
as  confused  and  contradictory  as  are  those  of  the  early  struggles 
of  Rome.  It  is  only  the  general  course  of  events'  that  we  can 
make  out  with  any  degree  of  certainty. 

In  the  first  war  the  Messenians,  under  the  lead  of  their  patriot 
king  Aristodemus,  offered  an  obstinate  resistance  to  the  Spartan 
invaders.  A  strongly  fortified  city  on  the  cliffs  of  Mount  Ithome 
was  the  last  rallying-place  of  the  hard-pressed  Messenians.  But 
after  a  prolonged  siege  this  citadel  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
Spartans,  and  the  first  war  came  to  an  end.  The  conquered 
Messenians  were  reduced  to  vassalage,  their  relation  to  the 
Spartans  becoming  somewhat  like  that  of  the  Perioeci  of  Laconia. 
Many  of  the  better  class,  choosing  exile  to  servitude,  fled  beyond 
the  sea  to  Ionia  or  to  Italy  in  search  of  new  homes.  Rhegium, 
in  Italy,  received  some  of  the  fugitives. 

An  interval  of  two  generations  separated  the  First  from  the  Second 
Messenian  War.  Then  the  sons  of  the  sons  of  those  Messenians  who 
had  made  the  first  brave  fight  against  the  Spartan  invaders  of  their 
land,  taking  advantage  of  Sparta's  misfortunes  in  war,  flew  to  arms, 
with  the  desperate  determination  to  drive  out  the  enslavers  of  their 
country.  The  Messenians  were  aided  in  their  struggle  by  Argos 
and  some  of  the  Arcadian  states,  that  were  jealous  of  the  rising 
power  of  Sparta.  The  Spartans  found  alhes  in  the  Corinthians  and 
the  Eleans. 

The  Messenians  in  after  times  so  adorned  this  really  heroic 
period  of  their  history  with  such  extravagant  tales  of  the  exploits 
of  their  patriot  ancestors,  that  it  is  quite  impossible  for  us  to  tell 


E  East 


D      Longitude  22  East       E 


SPARTAN  SUPREMACY  ESTABLISHED.  71 

just  what  did  happen  or  what  was  done.  It  is  related  that  in  the 
midst  of  the  war,  the  Spartans,  falHng  into  despair,  sent  to  Delphi 
for  advice.  The  oracle  directed  them  to  ask  Athens  for  a  com- 
mander. The  Athenians  did  not  wish  to  aid  the  Lacedaemonians, 
yet  dared  not  oppose  the  oracle.  So  they  sent  Tyrtaeus,  a  poet- 
schoolmaster,  who  they  hoped  and  thought  would  prove  of  but 
little  service  to  Sparta.  Whatever  truth  there  may  be  in  this 
part  of  the  story,  it  seems  indisputable  that,  during  the  Second 
Messenian  War,  a  poet  named  Tyrtaeus,  reanimated  the  droop- 
ing spirits  of  the  Spartans  by  the  energy  of  his  war-hymns. 
Perhaps  it  would  not  be  too  much  to  say  that  Sparta  owed  her 
final  victory  to  the  inspiring  songs  of  this  martial  poet. 

But  the  freedom  which  the  fathers  could  not  preserve,  the  sons 
could  not  regain.  The  uprising  was  finally  crushed,  and  as  a 
punishment  for  their  revolt  the  Spartans  laid  upon  the  necks  of 
the  reconquered  people  a  far  heavier  yoke  of  servitude  than  that 
which  they  had  endeavored  to  throw  off.  From  the  state  of 
Perioeci  they  were  reduced  to  the  degrading  and  bitter  condition 
of  the  Helots  of  Laconia.  As  at  the  end  of  the  first  war,  so  now 
many  of  the  nobles  fled  the  country,  and  found  hospitality  as 
exiles  in  other  lands.  Some  of  the  fugitives  conquered  for  them- 
selves a  place  in  Sicily,  and  gave  name  and  importance  to  the 
still  existing  city  of  Messana  (Messina),  on  the  Sicilian  straits. 

Thus  Sparta  secured  possession  of  Messenia.  From  the  end  of 
the  Second  Messenian  War  on  to  the  decline  of  the  Spartan  power 
in  the  fourth  century  B.C.,  the  Messenians  were  the  serfs  of  the 
Spartans.  All  the  southern  part  of  the  Peloponnesus,  from  the 
Ionian  to  the  ^gean  Sea,  was  now  Spartan  territory. 

Spartan  Supremacy  established  in  Central  and  Northern  Pelo- 
ponnesus.—  After  Sparta  had  secured  possession  of  Messenia, 
her  influence  and  power  advanced  steadily  until  her  supremacy 
or  leadership  was  acknowledged  by  all  the  other  states  of  the 
Peloponnesus,  save  Argos. 

The  Arcadian  mountaineers  offered  a  stout  resistance  to  the 
Spartan  arms.     Foremost  in  the  struggle  for  freedom  was  Tegea, 


72  THE  RISE    OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

a  border  city  towards  Laconia,  and  one  of  the  few  important 
Arcadian  towns.  The  Tegeans,  however,  were  finally  compelled 
to  make  terms  with  Sparta  (about  560  B.C.).  They  retained 
their  autonomy,  but  were  bound  to  follow  the  lead  of  Sparta  in 
war.  This  alliance  was  one  of  the  main  sources  of  Sparta's  pre- 
ponderant influence  in  Greek  affairs  during  the  next  hundred 
years  and  more.  After  the  submission  of  Tegea,  the  remainder  of 
the  towns  and  villages  of  Arcadia  were  gradually  forced  into  a 
condition  of  dependency  upon  Sparta. 

Still  more  stubborn  was  the  resistance  which  the  Spartans 
encountered  from  Argos.  This  city  naturally  contended  bravely 
for  the  maintenance  of  her  ancient  supremacy  in  Northeastern 
Peloponnesus.  But  there  was  no  longer  a  Pheidon  at  the  head  of 
the  ambitious  state.  The  Argive  power  had  greatly  declined  dur- 
ing the  seventh  century,  several  of  the  cities,  among  them  the 
important  states  of  Corinth  and  Sicyon,  which  in  earlier  times 
were  subject  to  her  authority,  having  recovered  their  freedom. 
Notwithstanding  the  fallen  state  of  her  once  really  imperial  affairs, 
Argos  for  a  long  time  offered  brave  resistance  to  the  encroach- 
ments of  Sparta. 

From  time  immemorial  the  Spartans  and  the  Argives  had 
contended  for  the  possession  of  Cynuria,  a  mountainous  border- 
district  between  Laconia  and  Argolis.  Before  the  beginning  of  the 
Second  Messenian  War  Sparta  had  got  a  firm  hold  of  a  large  part 
of  the  disputed  territory ;  but  it  was  nearly  a  century  after  the 
close  of  the  struggle  with  Messenia  (about  547  B.C.)  before  she 
secured  possession  of  the  whole  of  the  district.^ 

About  a  generation  after  the  final  loss  of  Cynuria,  the  Argives 

1  Tradition  represents  the  last  battle  between  the  rival  states  as  having  assumed 
at  first  the  character  of  a  contest  in  the  gymnasium.  It  was  agreed  beween  the  two 
armies  that,  instead  of  fighting  in  the  ordinary  way,  three  hundred  picked  Argives 
should  fight  an  equal  number  of  picked  Spartans,  and  the  city  Thyrea  (Thyrea 
and  its  territory  formed  the  northern  part  of  Cynuria),  which  was  the  place  in  dis- 
pute, should  be  the  prize  of  the  party  whose  champions  were  victorious.  The 
combat  failed,  however,  to  decide  the  matter,  and  a  regular  battle  was  fought,  in 
which  the  Spartans  were  victorious.     Read  the  story  in  Herod,  i.  82. 


SPARTAN  SUPREMACY  ESTABLISHED.  73 

suffered  a  loss  of  infinitely  greater  proportions.  Hostilities  hav- 
ing broken  out  again  between  them  and  the  Spartans,  the  latter, 
under  the  lead  of  their  king  Cleomenes,  invaded  Argolis.  The 
Argives,  defeated  in  battle,  fled  for  asylum  to  a  sacred  grove  near 
at  hand.  Here  they  were  hemmed  in  by  the  Spartans,  and  then 
the  wood  set  afire.  The  six  thousand  Argives  within  the  grove 
perished  to  a  man,  those  that  endeavored  to  escape  the  flames 
falling  by  the  Spartan  swords.  Thus  in  a  single  day  two-thirds 
of  the  fighting  population  of  Argos  were  destroyed.^ 

This  terrible  crime  left  Spartan  influence  supreme  in  Argolis. 
Argos  remained  a  free  city,  but  her  power  extended  only  a  Httle 
distance  beyond  her  walls.  She  refused  to  acknowledge  the 
supremacy  of  Sparta,  but  was  powerless  to  offer,  until  a  later 
period,  any  further  resistance  to  her  advance  to  the  hegemony 
of  the  Peloponnesian  states. 

Even  before  the  complete  destruction  of  the  Argive  power  by 
the  Spartans  they  had  formed  close  alliances  with  the  important 
cities  of  Corinth  and  Sicyon.  These  alliances  had  been  secured 
by  aiding  the  Dorian  oligarchs  of  these  cities  to  get  control  of  the 
government.  Since  the  maintenance  of  the  rule  of  these  nobles 
depended  upon  outside  help,  naturally  they  became  firm  friends 
of  Sparta  and  held  faithfully  to  the  Lacedaemonian  alliance. 

During  this  same  period  in  which  Sparta  was  gaining  supremacy 
in  the  central  and  northeastern  parts  of  the  Peloponnesus,  she 
was  also  acquiring  influence  in  the  northwestern  portion,  that  is,  in 
Elis.  Her  appearance  here  had  for  its  aim  the  virtual  manage- 
ment of  the  Olympian  games,  which  had  already  grown  into 
national  importance,  and  which  naturafly  brought  great  honor 
and  influence  to  those  who  enjoyed  the  superintendence  of  the 
festival. 

Among  the  Hellenic  tribes  occupying  the  district  of  Elis  were 
the  Pisatans  and  the  Eleans.  Olympia  lay  within  the  territory  of 
the  Pisatans,  and  in  the  earliest  times  the  superintendence  of  the 
Olympian  games  was  in   their  hands.     Rut    the    Eleans,    having 

1  The  date  of  this  massacre  is  unknown.     It  probably  occurred  about  505  B.C. 


74  THE  RISE    OF   THE   SPARTAN  POWER. 

conquered  the  Pisatans,  assumed  the  guardianship  of  the  shrine. 
The  Pisatans  made  repeated  efforts  to  regain  control  of  the  sanct- 
uary. The  Eleans  called  upon  Sparta  for  help,  and  the  opportu- 
nity thus  afforded  the  Spartans  to  interfere  in  the  affairs  of  Olympia 
was  eagerly  embraced  by  them.  The  issue  of  the  matter  was  that 
the  Pisatans  were  reduced  to  the  condition  of  serfs,  and  the 
management  of  the  Olympian  games  was  eventually  secured  to 
the  Eleans.  But  under  the  circumstances  the  influence  of  Sparta 
at  Olympia  was,  of  course,  supreme,  and,  through  the  national 
festivals  held  there  every  four  years,  her  name  and  fame  were 
spread  throughout  all  Hellas. 

Sparta  now  began  to  be  looked  to  even  by  the  Greek  cities  be- 
yond the  Peloponnesus  as  the  natural  leader  and  champion  of  the 
Greeks.  Her  renown  was  also,  it  seems,  spreading  even  among 
barbarian  nations ;  for  about  the  middle  of  the  sixth  century  B.C. 
we  hear  of  an  attempt  made  by  Croesus,  king  of  Lydia,  to  secure 
her  for  an  ally  in  his  unfortunate  war  with  Cyrus  of  Persia,  which 
was  at  that  time  the  rising  power  in  Asia. 

Having  now  traced  in  brief  outHne  the  rise  of  Sparta  to  suprem- 
acy in  the  Peloponnesus,  we  must  turn  aside  to  take  a  wider  look 
over  Hellas,  in  order  to  note  an  expansive  movement  of  the  Hel- 
lenic race  which  resulted  in  the  establishment  of  Hellenes  upon 
almost  every  shore  of  the  then  known  world. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Life  of  Lyctirgus.  (The  best  translation  of  Plu- 
tarch is  Stewart  and  Long's,  4  vols.)  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp. 
175-315.  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  ii.  pp.  259-377; 
(twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  ii.  pp.  337-466.  Holm,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i. 
chs.  XV.,  xvi.,  and  xvii.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  194-278, 
for  the  history  of  the  leading  Peloponnesian  states  down  to  the  end  of  the 
Second  Messenian  War;  ib.,  pp.  430-449,  for  the  history  of  Sparta  in  the  sixth 
century. 


CAUSES   OF  GREEK   COLONIZATION.  11 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE  AGE  OF  GREEK  COLONIZATION. 

(About  750-600  B.C.) 

Causes  of  Greek  Colonization.  —  The  latter  half  of  the  eighth 
and  the  seventh  century  B.C.  constituted  a  period  in  Greek  history 
marked  by  great  activity  in  the  establishment  of  colonies.  This 
expansive  movement  of  the  Greek  race  forms  an  important  chap- 
ter not  only  in  Hellenic,  but  also,  as  we  shall  learn,  in  general 
history. 

The  inciting  causes  of  Greek  colonization  at  the  period  named  ^ 
were  various.  One  was  the  growth  in  wealth  of  the  cities  of  the 
home  land  ^  and  the  consequent  expansion  of  their  trade  and  com- 
merce. Miletus  on  the  Asian  coast,  Chalcis  and  Eretria  on  the 
island  of  Euboea,  Corinth  and  Megara  on  the  Isthmus,  and  scores 
of  other  cities  had  grown  into  large  and  flourishing  commercial 
communities.  This  development  had  created  an  eager  desire  for 
wealth,  and  given  birth  to  a  spirit  of  mercantile  enterprise.  Thou- 
sands were  ready  to  take  part  in  any  undertaking  which  seemed 
to  offer  a  chance  for  adventure  or  to  open  a  way  to  the  quick 
acquisition  of  riches. 

Another  motive  of  emigration  was  supplied  by  the  political 
unrest  which  at  this  time  filled  almost  all  the  cities  of  Greece. 

1  We  are  not  concerned  in  the  present  chapter  with  the  earlier  emigration 
movement  caused  by  the  Dorian  invasion  of  the  Peloponnesus,  and  which  resulted 
in  the  establishment  of  the  ^olian,  Ionian,  and  Dorian  settlements  along  the  Asian 
shore  and  on  the  adjacent  islands  of  the  ^gean  (see  p.  28). 

2  By  the  "  home  land,"  as  we  here  use  the  term,  we  mean  the  western  shore  of 
Asia  Minor,  the  islands  of  the  ^gean,  and  Greece  proper. 


76  THE  AGE    OE  GREEK   COLONIZATION. 

The  growth  within  their  walls  of  a  wealthy  trading  class,  who 
naturally  desired  to  have  a  part  in  the  government,  brought  this 
order  in  conflict  with  the  oligarchs,  who  in  most  of  the  cities  at 
this  time  held  in  their  hands  all  political  authority.  The  resulting 
contentions — which  issued  sometimes  in  the  triumph  of  the  nobles, 
and  the  more  unendurable  oppression  of  the  masses,  sometimes  in 
the  victory  of  the  people  and  the  depression  of  the  oligarchy,  and 
still  again  in  the  rise  of  a  tyrant  whose  rule  often  bore  heavily  on 
all  orders  of  the  community  —  created  a  large  discontented  class, 
who  were  ready  to  undertake  the  labor  and  undergo  the  privations 
attending  the  founding  of  new  homes  in  remote  lands,  if  only 
thereby  they  might  secure  freer  conditions  of  life. 

Other  motives  blended  with  those  already  mentioned.  There 
was  the  restless  Greek  spirit,  the  Greek  love  of  adventure,  which 
doubtless  impelled  many  of  the  young  and  ardent  to  embark  in 
the  undertakings.  To  this  class  especially  did  Sicily  and  the  other 
little-known  lands  of  the  West  present  a  pecuHar  attraction. 

To  all  these  inciting  causes  of  the  great  emigration  must  be 
added  the  aggressions  of  Sparta  upon  her  neighbors  in  the  Pelopon- 
nesus. We  have  already  seen  how  many  of  the  Messenians,  at  the 
end  of  their  first  and  again  at  the  close  of  their  second  unsuccess- 
ful struggle  with  Sparta,  joined  the  emigrants  who  just  then  were 
setting  out  for  the  colonies  in  the  western  seas  (pp.  70,  71). 

Relation  of  a  Greek  Colony  to  its  Mother  City.  —  The  his- 
tory of  the  Greek  colonies  would  be  unintelligible  without  an 
understanding  of  the  relation  in  which  a  Greek  colony  stood  to 
the  city  sending  out  the  emigrants. 

There  was  a  fundamental  difference  between  Greek  and  Roman 
colonization.  The  Roman  colony  was  subject  to  the  authority  of 
the  mother  city.  The  emigrants  remained  citizens  or  semi-citizens 
of  Rome.^  The  Greek  colony,  on  the  other  hand,  was,  in  almost 
all  cases,  wholly  independent  of  its  parent  city.  The  Greek  mind 
could  not  entertain  the  idea  of  one  city  as  rightly  ruling  over 

1  In  this  respect  the  colonies  of  Rome  resembled  those  of  modern  European 
states. 


RELATION  OF  COLONY   TO   MOTHER    CITY.  77 

another,  even  though  that  other  were  her  own  daughter  colony. 
Consequently  the  principle  of  city  autonomy  ruled  in  dispersed 
or  colonial  Hellas  as  well  as  in  the  home  land.  As  a  rule,  each 
colony  formed  a  distinct,  independent  state,  and  worked  out  its 
own  poHtical  destinies.^ 

But  while  there  were  no  political  bonds  uniting  the  mother  city 
and  her  daughter  colonies,  still  the  colonies  were  attached  to  their 
parent  country  by  ties  of  kinship,  of  culture,  and  of  filial  piety. 
The  sacred  fire  on  the  altar  of  the  new  home  was  kindled  from 
embers  piously  borne  by  the  emigrants  from  the  public  hearth  of 
the  mother  city,  and  testified  constantly  that  the  citizens  of  the  two 
cities  were  members  of  the  same  though  divided  family.  Thus  by 
the  religion  of  the  hearth  were  the  mother  and  the  daughter  city 
naturally  drawn  into  close  sympathy. 

The  feelings  that  the  colonists  entertained  for  their  mother 
country  is  shown  by  the  names  which  they  often  gave  to  the  prom- 
inent objects  in  and  about  their  new  home.  Just  as  the  affection- 
ate memory  of  the  homes  from  which  they  had  gone  out  prompted 
the  New  England  colonists  to  reproduce  in  the  new  land  the 
names  of  places  and  objects  dear  to  them  in  the  old,  so  did  the 
cherished  remembrance  of  the  land  they  had  left  lead  the  Greek 
emigrants  to  give  to  their  new  city,  to  its  streets  and  temples  and 
fountains  and  hills,  the  familiar  and  endeared  names  of  the  old 
home.  The  reappearance  in  the  colonies  of  the  names  of  the 
home  land  is  one  clue  which,  in  the  study  of  Greek  colonization, 
enables  us  to  determine  the  origin  of  the  colonists,  and  to  trace 
the  various  currents  of  emigration  which  set  from  the  mother 
country  towards  the  different  shores  of  the  Mediterranean  and 
the  Black  Sea. 

1  Besides  these  independent  colonies,  however,  which  were  united  to  the  mother 
city  by  the  ties  of  friendship  and  reverence  alone,  there  was  another  class  of  colo- 
nies known  as  cleruchies.  The  settlers  in  these  did  not  lose  their  rights  of 
citizenship  in  the  mother  city,  which  retained  full  control  of  their  affairs.  Such 
settlements,  however,  were  more  properly  garrisons  than  colonies,  and  were  few  in 
number  compared  with  the  independent  communities.  Athens,  as  we  shall  see, 
had  a  number  of  such  colonies. 


78  THE  AGE    OF  GREEK   COLONIZATION. 

The  Condition  of  the  Mediterranean  World  favorable  to  the 
Colonizing  Movement. —  The  Mediterranean  lands  were  at  this 
time,  say  during  the  eighth  and  seventh  centuries  B.C.,  in  a  most 
favorable  state  for  this  colonizing  movement  of  the  Greeks.  The 
cities  of  Phoenicia,  the  great  rivals  of  the  Greeks  in  maritime 
enterprise,  had  been  crippled  by  successive  blows  from  the  Assyr- 
ian kings,  who  just  now  were  pushing  out  their  empire  to  the 
Mediterranean.  This  laming  of  the  mercantile  activity  of  Tyre 
and  Sidon,  left  their  trade  and  that  of  their  colonies  a  prey  to  the 
Greeks.  It  should  be  noticed,  however,  that  after  the  dechne  of 
the  cities  of  Phoenicia,  the  Phoenician  colony  of  Carthage  on  the 
African  shore  gradually  grew  into  a  new  centre  of  Semitic  trade 
and  colonizing  activity,  and  practically  shut  the  Greeks  out  of  the 
greater  part  of  the  Mediterranean  lying  west  of  Sicily. 

Another  circumstance  was  favorable  to  Greek  colonization. 
The  shores  of  the  Mediterranean  were  at  this  time,  speaking 
broadly,  unoccupied.  The  great  kingdoms  of  later  times,  Lydia, 
Persia,  Macedonia,  and  Rome  had  not  yet  arisen,  or  were  still 
inland  powers,  and  indifferent  respecting  the  coast  lands ;  while 
the  barbarian  tribes  whose  territories  bordered  upon  the  sea,  of 
course  attached  no  special  value  to  the  harbors  and  eligible  com- 
mercial sites  along  their  coasts.  But  these  peoples  were  advancing 
in  culture  and  were  beginning  to  feel  a  desire  for  the  manufactures 
of  foreign  lands,  and  consequently  rather  welcomed  than  otherwise 
the  Greek  traders  to  their  shores.  It  is  true  that  the  Greek  colo- 
nists had  sometimes  to  fight  hard  for  a  foothold  in  the  new  land ; 
but  in  general  the  opposition  they  encountered  was  slight  com- 
pared to  what  they  would  have  met  with  at  a  later  period,  when  all 
the  shores  had  owners  who  were  themselves  directly  interested  in 
the  commerce  of  the  Mediterranean. 

We  may  compare  the  situation  in  the  Mediterranean  at  the 
period  of  Greek  colonization  to  that  of  the  New  World  at  the 
opening  of  the  era  of  colonization  by  the  European  peoples.  The 
shore-lands  here  were  virtually  without  owners,  for  the  reason  that 
not  any  of  the  native  tribes  had  yet  reached  the  stage  of  ocean 


THE  DELPHIAN   ORACLE.  79 

commerce,  and  consequently  did  not  value  the  immediate  coast 
country.  Indeed,  the  colonists  or  traders  were  in  general  well 
received  by  the  natives,  and  often  at  first  looked  upon  as  bene- 
factors, since  they  brought  them  many  articles  for  which  they  gladly 
gave  in  exchange  their  hunting  and  fishing  products. 

Greek  Colonization  and  the  Delphian  Oracle.  — The  colonizing 
undertakings  of  the  Greeks  were,  in  a  measure  at  least,  directed 
by  the  Delphian  priesthood  in  the  name  of  the  god  Apollo,  who, 
as  we  have  seen  (p.  49),  was  regarded  as  the  founder  and  patron 
of  colonies.^  A  colony  established  without  the  sanction  of  the 
Delphian  oracle  was,  it  was  believed,  sure  to  come  to  grief. 
And  as  a  matter  of  fact  colonists  who  had  piously  sought  the 
counsel  of  the  oracle  were  more  Hkely  to  succeed  in  their  under- 
taking than  those  who  had  neglected  to  secure  the  co-operation 
of  the  Delphian  priesthood.  There  were  several  reasons  for  this. 
In  the  first  place,  the  managers  of  the  shrine  were,  through  their 
special  knowledge  of  the  Mediterranean  lands  (p.  49), able  to  give 
helpful  advice  to  the  emigrants.  Again,  the  priests  naturally 
interested  themselves  in  the  affairs  of  a  colony  that  had  been 
founded  under  their  direction,  and  labored  for  its  success  and 
prosperity.  And  still  again,  colonists  going  out  under  the  auspices 
of  Apollo  were  less  likely  than  those  whose  enterprise  had  not 
received  such  sanction  to  yield  to  the  hardships  and  discourage- 
ments which  they  were  sure  to  meet  with  in  their  efforts  to  estab- 
Hsh  new  homes  on  remote  and  barbarous  shores,  since  they  would 
be  sustained  and  inspired  by  the  thought  that  they  were  under 
divine  patronage  and  protection.^ 

In  the  account  which  follows  of  the  settlements  formed  by  the 
Greek  colonists  on  different  shores,  we  shall  have  occasion  to 
speak  of  the  special  services  rendered  by  the  Delphian  oracle  in 

1  Holm  thinks  that  the  Delphian  priesthood  did  not  take  the  initiative  in  colo- 
nizing enterprises ;  but  that  the  spots  favorable  for  settlement  were  actually  selected 
by  the  intending  colonists  themselves,  who,  however,  after  their  plans  were  formed 
sought  for  their  proposed  undertaking  the  sanction  of  the  oracle.  History  of  Greece, 
vol  i.  pp.  231,  232. 

2  Cf.  The  Pilgrim  Fathers  in  New  England. 


80  THE   AGE   OF  GREEK  COLONIZATION. 

the  establishment  of  particular  colonies,  notably  those  of  Byzan- 
tium and  Cyrene. 

*'  Spheres  of  Influence  "  of  the  different  Colonizing  Cities. — 
We  proceed  now  to  give  some  details  respecting  the  colonization 
of  particular  shores,  and  to  speak  of  the  attractions  which  drew 
the  Greek  emigrants  to  this  shore  or  that.  As  to-day  in  the 
partition  of  Africa  the  different  European  states  have  what  they 
call  their  "  spheres  of  influence,"  so  in  the  era  of  Greek  coloni- 
zation the  various  cities  of  the  mother  country  had  what  we  may 
designate  as  their  spheres  of  influence.  Thus  the  influence  of 
the  Ionian  city  of  Miletus  was  paramount  in  the  Black  Sea,  and 
the  shores  of  that  region  became  covered  with  her  colonies.  The 
important  city  of  Chalcis,  in  Euboea,  claimed  as  her  particular 
territory  the  Macedonian  shore.  Corinth,  as  was  natural  from 
her  position,  sought  influence  in  the  seas  to  the  west  of  Greece. 

The  Chalcidian  Colonies  (about  750-650  b.c).  —  An  early 
and  favorite  colonizing  ground  of  the  Greeks  was  the  Macedo- 
nian coast.  Here  a  triple  promontory  juts  far  out  into  the 
y^gean,  breaking  in  a  dangerous  way  its  northern  shore.  On  this 
broken  shore,  Chalcis  of  Euboea,  with  the  help,  however,  of  emi- 
grants from  other  cities,  particularly  from  Eretria,  founded  so 
many  colonies  —  thirty-two  owned  her  as  their  mother  city  — 
that  the  land  became  known  as  Chalcidice.^ 

One  of  the  chief  attractions  of  this  shore  to  the  Greek  colonists 
and  traders  was  the  rich  copper,  silver,  and  gold  deposits  found 
in  the  mountains  of  the  promontory  and  the  back  country.  The 
immense  slag  heaps  found  there  to-day  bear  witness  to  the  former 
importance  of  the  mining  industry  of  the  region.  The  hills  too 
were  clothed  with  heavy  forests  which  furnished  excellent  timber 
for  ship-building,  and  this  was  an  important  item  in  the  trade  of 
the  Chalcidian  colonies,  since  timber  in  many  parts  of  continental 
Greece  was  far  from  abundant. 

The  Chalcidian  colonies,  among  which  Olynthus  was  promi- 

1  Potidaea,  however,  one  of  the  most  important  cities  in  Chalcidice,  was  a 
colony  of  Corinth. 


.^r'.s:^^^ 


GREECE 

and  the 

GREEK  COLONIES. 


Ionian ., j     I 

Dorian „ J I 

Other  Greek  Baces I      I 

Phoenician IS 


COLONIES   OF   THE   HELLESPONT.  81 

nent,  exercised  a  very  important  influence  upon  the  course  and 
development  of  Greek  history.  Their  importance  in  the  history 
of  culture  can  hardly  be  overestimated.  Through  them  it  was, 
in  large  measures,  that  the  inland  tribes  of  Macedonia,  particularly 
the  ruHng  class,  became  so  deeply  tinctured  with  Hellenic  civili- 
zation. It  was  this  circumstance  which,  as  we  shall  learn,  gave 
special  historical  significance  to  the  Macedonian  conquests  of 
later  times,  making  them  as  it  did  something  more  than  the  mere 
destructive  forays  of  barbarians. 

Colonies  on  the  Hellespont,  the  Propontis,  and  the  Bosporus. 
—  A  secon(j  region  full  of  attractions  to  the  colonists  of  the  enter- 
prising commercial  cities  of  the  mother  country  was  that  embrac- 
ing the  Hellespont  and  the  Bosporus,  together  with  the  connecting 
sheet  of  water  known  to  the  Greeks  as  the  Propontis.  These 
water  channels,  forming  as  they  do  the  gateway  to  the  northern 
world,  early  drew  the  attention  of  the  Greek  traders.  Here  were 
founded,  among  other  cities,  the  Milesian  settlement  of  Cyzicus 
(756  B.C.)  and  the  Megarian  colonies  of  Chalcedon  (675  B.C.) 
and  Byzantium  (658  B.C.),  the  latter  of  which  was  destined  to  a 
long  and  brilliant  history. 

Byzantium  was  built,  under  the  special  direction  of  the  Delphian 
Apollo,  on  one  of  the  most  magnificent  sites  for  a  great  emporium 
that  the  ancient  world  afforded.  It  is  said  that,  when  the  founders 
of  the  colony  sought  of  the  oracle  advice  in  regard  to  a  site 
for  their  proposed  settlement,  they  received  for  a  reply  that  they 
should  "  built  opposite  the  city  of  the  blind,"  by  which  was  meant 
Chalcedon,  with  the  implication  that  the  Chalcidians  had  shown 
httle  sagacity  in  passing  by  such  an  excellent  site  as  that  at  Byzan- 
tium and  choosing  the  inferior  one  where  they  were. 

The  entire  region  of  which  we  are  speaking  was  strategic 
ground  in  ancient  as  it  is  in  modern  times.  Between  the 
Greeks  and  the  barbarians,  as  well  as  between  the  Greek  cities 
themselves,  there  was,  as  we  shall  see,  many  a  hard  and  long  fight 
for  the  possession  of  the  cities  which  guarded  the  gateways  to  the 
northern  world. 


82  THE  AGE    OF  GREEK   COLONIZATION. 

Colonies  in  the  Euxine  Region.  —  The  tale  of  the  Argonauts 
proves  that  in  prehistoric  times  the  Greeks  probably  carried  on 
trade  with  the  remotest  shores  of  the  Euxine.  In  the  Golden 
Fleece,  the  prize  of  the  Argonaut  heroes  (p.  19),  we  may  per- 
haps recognize  a  poetical  rendering  of  an  early  trade  in  gold 
gathered  from  the  washings  of  the  streams  of  the  Caucasus. 
But  the  chief  products  and  articles  of  the  Black  Sea  trade  in 
historic  times  were  fish,  grain,  and  cattle,  besides  timber,  copper, 
and  iron. 

The  fisheries,  particularly,  of  the  region  formed  the  basis  of  a 
very  active  and  important  trade.  The  fish  markets  of  the  com- 
mercial Ionian  cities  of  European  Greece  and  of  Asia  Minor,  in 
which  fish  formed  a  chief  article  of  diet  among  the  poorer  classes, 
were  supplied  in  large  measure  by  the  products  of  these  northern 
fisheries. 

Besides  the  products  of  the  mines  and  fisheries  of  the  region, 
there  was  a  trade,  important  in  ancient  as  in  modern  times,  in 
grain  and  cattle,  nourished  by  the  fertile  plains  of  Scythia  (now 
Russia).  So  large  was  the  trade  in  cereals,  that  we  may  call  this 
Black  Sea  region  the  granary  of  Greece,  in  the  same  sense  that 
North  Africa  and  Egypt  were  in  later  times  called  the  granary  of 
Rome. 

Still  another  object  of  commerce  in  the  Euxine  was  slaves. 
This  region  was  a  sort  of  slave-hunters'  land  —  the  Africa  of  Hellas. 
It  supplied  to  a  great  degree  the  slave  markets  of  the  Hellenic 
world.  In  the  modern  Caucasian  slave  trade  of  the  Mohammedan 
sultans,  we  may  recognize  a  survival  of  a  commerce  which  was 
active  twenty-five  hundred  years  ago. 

Prominent  among  the  Greek  colonies  established  on  the  south- 
ern shore  of  the  Euxine  was  Sinope,  founded  by  Miletus  about 
the  middle  of  the  eighth  century  B.C.  This  city  became  one  of 
the  most  important  centres  of  Greek  life  and  trade  in  these 
northern  regions. 

Trapezus,  now  Trebizond,  a  colony  established  by  Sinope,  was 
also  a  place  of  great  importance.     It  received  the  Ten  Thousand 


COLONIES   ON   THE   IONIAN  ISLANDS.  83 

Greeks  as  they  emerged  from  the  mountains  of  Armenia,  after 
their  memorable  march  under  the  lead  of  the  historian  Xenophon. 
A  series  of  colonies  of  Miletus,  among  which  were  Apollonia 
and  Odessus,  was  also  founded  on  the  western  Thracian  shore, 
between  the  Bosporus  and  the  mouth  of  the  Danube ;  while 
numerous  other  settlements  of  the  same  enterprising  city,  —  among 
which  Olbia  was  chief,  —  located  on  or  near  the  estuaries  of  the 
rivers  running  into  the  Euxine  on  the  north,  gathered  the  trade 
of  the  regions  tributary  to  these  streams. 

Eighty  colonies  in  the  Euxine  are  said  to  have  owned  Miletus 
as  their  mother  city.  The  coast  of  the  sea  became  so  crowded 
with  Greek  cities,  and  the  whole  region  was  so  astir  with  Greek 
enterprise,  that  the  Greeks  came  to  regard  this  quarter  of  the 
world,  once  looked  upon  as  so  remote  and  inhospitable,  as  almost 
a  part  of  the  home  country. 

Colonies  on  the  Ionian  Islands  and  the  Adjacent  Shores. — 
At  the  same  time  that  the  tide  of  Hellenic  migration  was  over- 
spreading the  northern  shores  of  the  ^gean  and  those  of  the 
Black  Sea,  it  was  also  flowing  towards  the  west  and  covering  the 
Ionian  Islands  and  the  coasts  of  Southern  Italy  and  Sicily. 

The  group  of  islands  lying  off  the  western  coast  of  Greece, 
known  as  the  Ionian  Isles,  together  with  the  adjacent  shores  of 
Acarnania  and  Epirus,  formed  an  important  region  of  Greek 
colonization.  Corinth,  as  was  natural  from  her  position,  took  a 
prominent  part  in  the  establishment  of  colonies  here.  One  of  the 
most  important  of  her  setdements  was  Corcyra.  The  relations  of 
this  colony  to  its  mother  city  were  very  unfilial,  and  a  quarrel 
between  them  was  one  of  the  immediate  causes  of  the  Peloponne- 
sian  War.^ 

The  colonies  on  the  islands  in  the  Ionian  Sea  formed  the  half- 
way station  to  Italy,  and  it  was  by  the  way  of  these  settlements 
that  Italy  during  the  era  of  colonization  received  a  large  and 
steady  stream  of  immigrants. 

1  On  the  western  coast  of  Greece  the  Corinthians  established  the  colonies  of 
Anactorium,  Ambracia,  Leucas,  and  Epidamnus  (circ.  650-600  B.C.). 


84 


THE   AGE    OF  GREEK   COLONIZATION. 


Colonies  in  Southern  Italy:  Magna  Grsecia. — At  this  time, 
Italy,  with  the  exception  of  Etruria  on  the  western  coast,  was  occu- 
pied by  tribes  that  had  made  but  little  progress  in  culture.  The 
power  of  Rome  had  not  yet  risen.  Hence  the  land  was  practically 
open  to  settlement  by  any  superior  or  enterprising  race. 


i^oiinffiey  Sc  Carmtehati,  £«y/-*#,  Boaiom 


Consequently  it  is  not  surprising  that  during  the  Greek  coloniz- 
ing era  Southern  Italy  became  so  thickly  set  with  Greek  cities  as 
to  become  known  as  Magna  Grcecia,  "  Great  Greece."  Here 
were  founded  during  the  latter  part  of  the  eighth  century  B.C. 
the  important  city  of  Taras,  the  Tarentum  of  the  Romans 
(708  B.C.)  ;  the  ^olian  city  of  Sybaris  (721  B.C.),  noted  for  the 
luxurious  life  of  its  citizens,  whence  our  term  Sybarite,  meaning  a 


COLONIES  IN  SICILY  AND  SOUTHERN  GAUL. 


85 


COIN    OF   SYBARIS. 


voluptuary;^  the  great  Croton  (711  b.c),  distinguished  for  its 
schools  of  philosophy  and  its  victors  in  the  Olympian  games ; 
Locri  (circ.  700  B.C.),  famous  for  the  laws  and  institutions  of  the 
legislator  Zaleucus ;  and  Rhegium  (circ.  715  B.C.),  the  mother  of 
statesmen,  historians,  poets,  and  artists. 

Upon  the  western  coast  of  the  peninsula  was  the  city  of  Cumae 
(Cyme),  famed  throughout  the  Grecian  and  the  Roman  world  on 
account  of  its  oracle 
and  sibyl.  This  was 
probably  the  oldest 
Greek  colony  in 
Italy. 

The  chief  impor- 
tance of  the  cities  of 
Magna  Gr?ecia  for 
civilization  springs 
from  their  relations 
to  Rome.  Through  them,  without  doubt,  the  early  Romans 
received  many  primary  elements  of  culture,  deriving  thence  prob- 
ably their  knowledge  of  letters,  as  well  as  of  Greek  constitutional 
law. 

Greek  Colonies  in  Sicily  and  Southern  Gaul.  —  The  island  of 
Sicily  is  in  easy  sight  from  the  Italian  shore.  About  the  same  time 
that  the  southern  part  of  the  peninsula  was  being  filled  with  Greek 
colonists,  this  island  was  also  receiving  a  swarm  of  immigrants. 
Here  was  planted  by  the  Dorian  Corinth  the  city  of  Syracuse 
(734  B.C.),  which,  before  Rome  had  become  great,  waged  war  on 
equal  terms  with  Carthage.  Not  far  from  Syracuse  was  established 
Leontini,  and  upon  the  southern  shore  of  the  island  arose  Agrigen- 
tum  (Acragas),  which  became,  after  Syracuse,  the  most  important 

1  Sybaris  is  said,  doubtless  with  exaggeration,  to  have  been  able  to  raise  an 
army,  counting  subject-allies,  of  three  hundred  thousand  men.  In  a  war  with 
Croton  it  was  wholly  destroyed,  all  its  inhabitants  being  either  killed  or  driven  into 
exile,  and  the  lands  of  the  city  being  taken  possession  of  by  the  conquerors  (510 
B.C.).  This  destruction  of  so  populous  and  wealthy  a  city  was  one  of  the  heaviest 
calamities  which  up  to  that  time  had  befallen  the  Hellenic  world. 


86 


THE  AGE    OF  GREEK   COLONIZATION. 


of  the  Greek  cities  in  Sicily.  On  the  eastern  shore,  Naxos 
(735  B.C.),  and  Catana  (about  720  B.C.)  were  built  under  the  very 
shadow  of  Mount  ^tna. 

Sicily  was  the  most  disorderly  and  tumultuous  part  of  Hellas. 
It  was  the  "wild,  wild  West  "  of  the  Hellenic  world.  It  was  the 
land  of  romance  and  adventure,  and  seems  to  have  drawn  to  itself 
the  most  untamed  and  venturesome  spirits  among  the  Greeks. 
To  the  grounds  of  disorder  and  strife  existing  among  the  Greek 
colonists  themselves  were  added  two  other  elements  of  discord, 
—  the  native  barbarians  and  the  Phoenicians.  The  growing  power 
of  Carthage,  the  representative  of  the  Phoenician  element,  checked 
the  expansion  of  the  Greek  colonies,  and  they  were  forced  to 
divide  the  island  with  these  Semitic  rivals  whom  centuries  before 
they  had  driven  from  the  ^gean. 

That  part  of  Gaul  which  touches  the  Mediterranean  where  the 
Rhone  empties  into  the  sea  was  another  region  occupied  by 
Greek  colonists.  A  chief  attraction  here  was  the  amber  and  tin 
brought  overland  from  the  Baltic  and  from  Britain.  Here  were 
established  several  colonies,  chief  among  which  was  Massalia,  the 
modern  Marseilles  (circ.  600  B.C.),  a  colony  of  Phocaea  in  Asia 
Minor. 

Colonies  in  North  Africa  and  Egypt :  Cyrene  and  Naucra- 
tis.  —  In  the   seventh  century  b.c.    the   Greeks   founded  on  the 

African  coast,  nearly 
opposite  the   island 
of  Crete,  the  impor- 
tant colony  of  Cy- 
rene, which  became 
the  metropolis  of  a 
large  district  known 
as  Cyrenaica.     The 
site  of  the  city  was 
one  of  the  most  eligible  on  the  African  shore.     Strangely  enough, 
the   Phoenicians,  notwithstanding  they  had  such  a  keen  eye  for 
good  colonial  sites,  had  passed  by  the  spot ;    but  the   Delphian 


Fig.  17.     COIN    OF   CYRENE. 


LIFE  IN   THE    GREEK   COLONIES.  87 

priests  seemed  somehow  to  have  become  acquainted  with  the 
advantages  offered  by  the  situation,  since  an  oracle  was  given 
some  Dorians  of  the  Cyclades  to  the  effect  that  they  should  estab- 
Hsh  a  colony  in  Libya.  When  emigration  to  the  new  settlement 
lagged,  Apollo  stimulated  the  movement  by  a  fresh  utterance 
which  threatened  with  the  punishment  of  unavailing  regret  all  such 
as  should  be  slack  in  acting  upon  the  advice  of  the  oracle.^  Thus 
under  the  direction  of  the  Delphian  priesthood  was  estabhshed 
on  this  admirable  site  one  of  the  most  important  of  the  Greek 
colonies,  a  city  which  was  long  the  chief  centre  of  Hellenic  influ- 
ence in  the  Southern  Mediterranean. 

In  the  Nile  Delta  the  Greeks  early  established  the  important 
station  of  Naucratis.  This  colony  was  at  the  height  of  its  pros- 
perity in  the  sixth  century  B.C.,  although  it  certainly  existed  as 
early  as  the  beginning  of  the  seventh  century.  It  was  the  gateway 
through  which  Hellenic  influences  passed  into  Egypt,  and  Egyp- 
tian influences  passed  out  into  Greece." 

Life  in  the  Greek  Colonies.  —  To  the  preceding  brief  account 
of  the  founding  of  the  Greek  colonies,  we  must  add  a  word  re- 
specting life  in  Dispersed  Hellas.  We  notice  some  such  contrast 
between  life  in  the  Greek  colonies  and  in  the  home  cities  as  is  ob- 
servable to-day  between  hfe  in  modern  European  colonies  and  in 
their  mother  countries. 

Speaking  broadly,  it  may  be  said  that  the  society  of  new  settle- 
ments is  freer  and  more  progressive  than  that  of  older  lands. 
There  are  several  reasons  for  this  difference.  One  is  that  it  is  the 
young  and  adventurous,  the  enterprising  and  open-minded,  who  are 
very  likely  to  make  up  the  train  of  emigrants.     Hence  the  eager, 

1  Herod,  iv.  150-159. 

2  Quite  recently  the  ruins  of  Naucratis  have  been  discovered  and  excavated. 
The  importance  of  the  discovery,  in  the  evidence  it  affords  of  the  influence  of 
Egyptian  upon  Greek  art  and  culture,  can  hardly  be  overrated.  It  supplies 
another  connecting  link  between  the  history  of  the  East  and  that  of  the  West. 
Ernest  Gardner,  in  his  report  of  his  work,  says  :  "  The  influence  of  Egypt  flowed 
through  Naucratis  to  Greece,  and  the  long-perfected  models  of  Egyptian  skill 
roused  the  emulation,  if  not  always  the  imitation,  of  the  young  and  quickly  rising 
art  of  Greece." 


88  THE  AGE  OF   GREEK  COLONIZATION. 

restless,  and  aspiring  spirit  that  pervades  the  Hf  e  of  a  new  settlement. 
Again,  among  colonists  are  apt  to  be  found  men  who  have  been 
the  victims  of  tyrannical  government  or  of  oppressive  institutions, 
and  who  in  the  new  home  become  the  ardent  advocates  of  new 
forms  of  government  and  new  social  arrangements  under  which 
they  hope  to  secure  better  and  more  equal  conditions  of  life. 

And  still  again,  in  a  new  community  there  are  not  so  many 
vested  interests  as  exist  in  an  old  country,  where,  for  instance, 
a  wealthy  aristocracy  has  long  dominated  society,  and  conse- 
quently proposed  changes  in  social  or  governmental  institutions 
are  not  so  stubbornly  opposed.  The  way  is  open  for  reforms ; 
the  ground  is  clear  for  experiments. 

For  these  various  reasons  it  is  usually  the  case  that,  while  the 
mother  countries  cling  tenaciously  to  the  institutions  and  modes 
of  thought  and  life  inherited  from  the  past,  their  colonies  readily 
introduce  new  institutions,  adapted  to  the  needs  of  the  times. 
The  Greek  colonies  illustrate  the  rule.  Life  in  many  of  them  at 
least  was  singularly  free,  active,  and  progressive.  The  cities  of 
Magna  Graecia  in  particular  became  the  scene  of  a  splendid  social 
and  intellectual  development.  It  was  in  the  Italian  city  of  Croton 
that  Pythagoras  found  the  most  congenial  environment  for  his 
celebrated  school  of  philosophy,  and  in  the  earlier  colonies  in 
Asia  Minor  that  literature  and  philosophy  took  their  rise. 

Place  of  the  Colonies  in  Grecian  History.  —  The  history  of 
Dispersed  Hellas  is  closely  interwoven  with  that  of  Continental 
Hellas.  From  the  colonies  many  social  and  intellectual  influences 
flowed  into  the  cities  of  the  home  country,  and  there  acted  as  lib- 
eralizing and  stimulating  forces  upon  life  and  thought.  Particu- 
larly in  the  political  realm  did  the  colonies  react  powerfully  upon 
the  cities  of  Greece,  and  in  a  large  measure  determine  the  course 
of  Grecian  history.  In  truth,  a  large  part  of  the  history  of  Greece 
would  be  unintelligible  should  we  lose  sight  of  Greater  Greece, 
just  as  a  large  part  of  the  history  of  Europe  since  the  seventeenth 
century  cannot  be  understood  without  a  knowledge  of  Greater 
Europe.     In  colonial  interests,  rivalries,  and  jealousies  we  shall 


PLACE  OF  THE   COLONIES  IN  GRECIAN  HISTORY.     89 

find  the  inciting  caiTses  of  many  of  the  contentions  and  wars 
between  the  cities  of  the  home  land.  It  was  the  rival  colonial 
interests  of  Athens  and  Corinth  that  afforded  one  of  the  immedi- 
ate causes  of  the  disastrous  Peloponnesian  War,  while  the  decisive 
blow  of  that  great  struggle  was  struck  beneath  the  walls  of  the 
Dorian  colony  of  Syracuse. 

Thus  the  more  we  learn  of  the  relations  of  the  colonies  to  their 
mother  cities  and  to  the  native  races  of  the  countries  in  which 
they  were  planted,  the  more  clearly  shall  we  recognize  the  vast 
significance  for  Greek  history  —  and  for  universal  history  as  well 
—  of  the  colonization  movement  which  we  have  been  tracing. 
In  its  influence  upon  the  social  and  intellectual  development  of 
mankind  it  may  well  be  compared  to  that  expansion  of  the  English 
race  which  has  estabhshed  peoples  of  English  speech  and  culture 
in  so  many  lands  and  upon  so  many  shores  of  both  the  Old  and 
the  New  World. 

References.  —  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  432-500.  Grote, 
History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iii.  pp.  163-220  and  247-275; 
(twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  iii.  pp.  349-410;  ib.  vol.  iv.  pp.  20-49.  Abbott, 
History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  333-365.  Holm,  History  of  Greece^  vol.  i. 
ch.  xxi. 


Fig.  18.     COIN    OF   CORINTH. 


90  THE  AGE    OF   THE    TYRANTS. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

THE  AGE   OF  THE  TYRANTS. 

(About  650-500  B.C.) 

The  Character  and  Origin  of  the  Greek  Tyrannies.  —  Just  as 
the  Homeric  monarchies  were  superseded  by  oligarchies,  so  were 
these  in  many  of  the  Greek  cities  superseded  by  tyrannies.  By 
the  term  Tyrannos  (tyrant)  the  Greeks  did  not  mean  one  who 
ruled  harshly,  but  simply  one  who  held  the  supreme  authority  in 
the  state  illegally.  Some  of  the  Greek  tyrants  were  mild  and 
beneficent  rulers,  though  too  often  they  were  all  that  the  name 
implies  among  us.  Sparta  was  almost  the  only  important  state 
which  did  not  at  one  time  or  another  fall  into  the  hands  of  a 
tyrant. 

The  so-called  "Age  of  the  Tyrants  "  lasted,  speaking  in  a  gen- 
eral way,  from  about  650  to  500  B.C.,  although  we  hear  of  tyrants 
ruling  in  some  cities  long  before  the  earlier  and  in  others  long 
after  the  later  date.  Indeed,  from  the  close  of  the  disastrous 
Peloponnesian  War  in  404  B.C.  on  to  the  subjection  of  Greece  by 
Rome  in  the  second  century  b.  c.  there  were  so  many  tyrannies  set 
up  in  the  various  Greek  cities  that  that  period  is  sometimes  called 
the  "  Age  of  the  Later  Tyrants." 

The  causes  that  led  to  the  overthrow  in  so  many  cities  of  oligar- 
chical rule  and  the  establishment  of  government  by  a  single  person 
were  various.  A  main  cause  of  the  rise  of  tyrannies  is  found  in 
the  misrule  of  the  oligarchs,  into  whose  hands  the  royal  authority 
of  earlier  times  had  passed.  By  their  selfish,  cruel,  and  arbitrary 
administration  of  the  government,  they  provoked  the  revolt  of  the 


THE    GREEK  FEELING    TOWARDS    THE    TYRANTS.     91 

people  and  invited  destruction.  The  factions,  too,  into  which 
they  were  divided  weakened  their  authority  and  paved  the  way  to 
their  fall. 

Working  with  the  above  causes  to  undermine  the  influence  of 
the  oligarchs,  was  the  advance  in  intelHgence  and  wealth  of  the 
trading  classes  in  the  mercantile  and  commercial  states  of 
Greece,  especially  in  the  Ionian  cities,  and  their  resulting  discon- 
tent with  the  oppressive  rule  of  the  oligarchical  families  and 
desire  to  participate  in  the  government. 

Tyrannies  were  established  in  different  ways  and  by  different 
classes  of  persons.  Sometimes  the  founder  of  a  tyranny  was  a 
patriarchal  king,  who  broke  through  the  constitutional  restraints 
with  which  his  power  had  been  hedged  about  by  the  nobles  and 
set  himself  up  as  an  irresponsible  ruler.  Such  was  King  Pheidon 
of  Argos,  of  whom  we  have  already  spoken  (p.  69).  Again,  the 
est'abhsher  of  a  tyranny  was  sometimes  a  magistrate  or  general 
who  misused  his  authority.  Still  again,  and  perhaps  most  fre- 
quently, the  person  setting  up  a  tyranny  was  some  ambitious 
disappointed  member  of  the  aristocracy,  who  had  held  himself 
out  as  the  champion  of  the  people,  and  to  whom  they,  anxious 
to  secure  economic  and  political  freedom,  had  entrusted  their 
cause  and  had  aided  in  overturning  the  hated  government  of  the 
oligarchs. 

The  Greek  Feeling  towards  the  Tyrants. — The  tyrants  sat 
upon  unstable  thrones.  The  Greeks,  always  lovers  of  freedom, 
had  an  inextinguishable  hatred  of  arbitrary  and  irresponsible 
government ;  and  of  course  the  nobles  who  were  excluded  from 
participation  in  public  affairs,  and  who  often  were  dealt  harshly 
with  by  the  tyrants  and  driven  into  exile,  were  continually  plot- 
ting against  them.  Furthermore,  the  odious  vices  and  atrocious 
crimes  of  some  of  them  caused  the  whole  class  to  be  regarded 
with  the  utmost  abhorrence,  so  much  so  that  tyrannicide  came  to 
be  regarded  by  the  Greeks  as  a  supremely  virtuous  act.  The 
slayer  of  a  tyrant  was  looked  upon  as  a  devoted  patriot  and 
pre-eminent  hero. 


92  THE  AGE    OF   THE    TYRANTS. 

Consequently  the  tyrannies  were,  as  a  rule,  short-lived,  rarely 
lasting  longer  than  three  generations.  They  were  usually  vio- 
lently overthrown,  and  the  old  oligarchies  re-established,  or 
democracies  set  up  in  their  place.  Speaking  broadly,  the  Dorian 
cities  preferred  oligarchical,  and  the  Ionian  cities  democratical 
government. 

Sparta's  Opposition  to  the  Tyrants.  —  Sparta,  which  state,  as 
has  been  noted,  never  fell  into  the  hands  of  a  tyrant,  was  very 
active  in  aiding  those  cities  that  had  been  so  unfortunate  as  to 
have  their  government  usurped  by  despots  to  drive  out  the 
usurpers,  and  to  re-establish  their  oligarchical  constitutions.  In 
this  matter  she  was  not  prompted  by  an  unselfish  desire  to  render 
a  service  to  the  states  concerned,  but  rather  aimed  to  strengthen 
her  own  influence  in  these  cities  by  preserving  in  them  institu- 
tions essentially  like  her  own,  and  by  keeping  the  control  of 
their  public  affairs  in  the  hands  of  a  few  families  who  should 
be  under  the  necessity  of  looking  to  her  for  the  support  of  their 
authority. 

Athens,  as  we  shall  see,  on  escaping  from  the  tyranny  under 
which  she  for  a  time  rested,  —  that  of  Peisistratus  and  his  sons,  — 
became  the  representative  and  ardent  champion  of  democracy. 

Typical  Tyrants:  Periander  of  Corinth  (625-585  b.c). — 
To  repeat  in  detail  the  traditional  accounts  of  all  the  tyrants 
that  arose  in  the  different  cities  of  Hellas  during  the  age  of  the 
tyrannies  would  be  both  wearisome  and  unprofitable ;  wearisome 
because  the  tales  of  the  various  despots  possess  a  singular  same- 
ness, and  unprofitable  because  these  stories  are  often  manifestly 
colored  and  distorted  by  popular  prejudice  and  hatred,  since  the 
Greeks  of  a  later  time  could  hardly  speak  temperately  of  a 
tyrant,  so  unutterably  odious  to  them  was  merely  the  name  itself. 
We  shall  therefore  simply  give  in  brief  form  the  story  of  two  or 
three  of  these  unconstitutional  rulers,  who  may  be  taken  as  fair 
representatives  of  their  class. 

Among  the  most  noted  of  the  tyrants  was  Periander  of  Corinth 
(625-585  B.C.).     He  inherited  the  tyranny  from  his  father  Cypse- 


TYPICAL    TYRANTS.  93 

lus/  to  whom  the  outrageous  misgovernment  of  the  oligarchical 
party  at  Corinth,  creating  popular  unrest  and  hatred,  had  offered 
an  opportunity  to  seize  supreme  authority.  He  far  surpassed  his 
father  in  the  harshness  and  burdensomeness  of  his  rule,  which  bore 
with  intolerable  weight  upon  all  classes  alike.  With  the  money 
wrung  from  his  subjects  by  heavy  taxes,  he  maintained  a  mercenary 
force  through  which  he  made  his  position  secure,  and  sustained 
a  court  whose  magnificence  rivalled  that  of  an  Oriental  potentate. 

According  to  Herodotus,  Periander  learned  of  Thrasybulus, 
tyrant  of  Miletus,  the  art  of  playing  the  tyrant  safely.  Having 
sent  a  messenger  to  that  despot  to  ask  him  respecting  the  best 
way  to  conduct  his  government,  Thrasybulus  is  said  to  have 
conducted  the  envoy  to  a  field  of  grain,  and,  as  they  walked 
through  it,  to  have  broken  off  and  thrown  away  such  heads  as 
lifted  themselves  above  the  others.  Then,  without  a  word,  he 
dismissed  the  messenger.  The  man,  returning  to  Periander,  re- 
ported that  he  had  been  able  to  secure  from  Thrasybulus  not  a 
single  word  of  advice,  but  told  how  singularly  he  had  acted  in 
destroying  the  best  of  his  crop  of  grain.  Periander  understood 
the  parable,  and  straightway  began  to  destroy  all  those  citizens 
whose  heads  overtopped  the  others.- 

Under  the  able  though  harsh  rule  of  Periander,  Corinth  attained 
the  height  of  her  prosperity  and  power.  The  despot  conquered 
the  Corinthian  colony  of  Corcyra,  and  established  other  settle- 
ments on  the  islands  and  shores  of  the  Ionian  Sea.  On  the  other 
side  of  Greece  he  founded  the  important  colony  of  Potidaea,  on 
the  Macedonian  coast,  and  reduced  to  a  condition  of  vassalage 
the  city  of  Epidaurus  on  the  Saronic  Gulf.  Through  these  con- 
quests and  colonial  settlements,  all  of  which  contributed  to  the 
trading  and  maritime  interests  of  Corinth,  the  despot  lifted  the 
city  to  a  commanding  place  among  the  commercial  cities  of 
Greece. 

1  Cypselus  ruled  as  tyrant  at  Corinth  from  655  to  625  B.C.  From  him  the  family 
of  Corinthian  tyrants  are  known  as  the  Cypselidae,  or  Cypselids. 

2  Herod,  v.  92,  section  6. 


94  THE  AGE    OF   THE    TYRANTS. 

Periander  was,  like  many  another  tyrant,  a  generous  patron  of 
artists  and  literary  men.  He  was  also,  either  through  piety  or 
policy,  a  liberal  patron  of  the  gods.  He  revived  the  Isthmian 
games,  adding  to  the  festival  gymnastic  contests,  and  made  splen- 
did votive  offerings  to  the  temples  at  Olympia.  Among  these  gifts 
was  a  chest  of  cedar  wood,  which  commemorated  an  incident  in 
the  life  of  his  father  Cypselus.^  The  sides  of  the  chest  were  cov- 
ered with  pictures,  representing  various  mythological  subjects, 
wonderfully  wrought  in  ivory,  gold,  and  wood.  This  chest  was 
regarded  as  one  of  the  art  curiosities  of  Greece,  and  was  still  to  be 
seen  among  the  treasures  at  Olympia  in  the  time  of  the  traveller 
Pausanias,  about  seven  centuries  after  the  era  of  the  Cypselidae.^ 

Periander's  varied  experiences  and  his  close  observation  of  events 
seem  to  have  made  him  something  of  a  philosopher,  since  many 
maxims  of  wisdom,  current  among  the  Greeks  of  later  times,  were 
attributed  to  him  as  their  author,  and  won  for  him  a  place  among 
the  Seven  Wise  Men  of  Greece. 

The  tyranny  at  Corinth  lasted  only  three  or  four  years 
after  the  death  of  Periander.  His  successor,  Psammetichus  by 
name^was  assassinated,  the  Spartans,  according  to  Plutarch,  aiding 
the  Corinthians  in  ridding  their  city  of  the  despot  and  restoring 
oligarchical  rule.^ 

Polycrates,  Tyrant  of  Samos  (535-522  b.c).  —  Another  tyrant 
whose  name  and  deeds  were  noised  throughout  the  Hellenic  world, 

1  According  to  legend,  the  child  Cypselus,  when  certain  of  the  nobles  sought  his 
life,  was  saved  by  his  mother  concealing  him  in  a  chest,  whence  his  name,  from 
the  Greek  word  ((cvv/zeArj)  for  chest. 

2  See  Pausanias,  v.  17-19. 

8  Nearly  contemporaneous  with  the  rule  of  the  Cypselidae  at  Corinth,  was  that 
at  Sicyon  of  the  Orthagoridas  (about  670-560  B.C.),  so  named  from  Orthagoras,  the 
founder  of  the  house.  The  most  noted  of  the  dynasty  was  Cleisthenes.  The  rule 
of  these  tyrants  was  just  and  mild,  and  consequently  we  are  not  surprised  to  learn 
that  their  government  lasted  through  four  generations.  At  the  same  period  The- 
agenes  ruled  as  tyrant  in  Megara  (probably  about  630-600  B.C.).  The  sad  state  ol 
this  city,  filled  with  strife  of  oligarchs  and  people,  is  vividly  pictured  in  the  verses 
of  the  elegiac  poet  Theognis,  a  native  Megarian,  who  wrote  during  the  latter  half 
of  the  sixth  century. 


POLYCRATES,    TYRANT   OF  SAMOS.  95 

and  the  vicissitudes  of  whose  career  left  a  deep  impression  upon 
the  Greek  imagination,  was  Polycrates  of  Samos  (535-522  B.C.). 

Polycrates  estabhshed  his  rule  in  Samos  in  the  way  so  common 
witli  the  tyrants,  —  by  overturning  through  violence  the  govern- 
ment of  his  own  order,  the  oligarchs.  Having  made  Samos  his 
stronghold,  Polycrates  conquered  many  of  the  surrounding  islands 
in  the  ^gean,  together  with  several  of  the  cities  of  the  Asian 
mainland,  and  made  himself  the  head  of  a  maritime  empire,  which 
he  maintained  with  a  fleet  of  a  hundred  pentecosters,  the  largest 
navy  which  any  Greek  state  had  up  to  that  time  collected. 

Polycrates  used  his  swift  galleys  in  overhauling  the  merchant 
ships  trading  in  the  adjoining  seas,  and  levying  tribute  upon  them. 
His  revenues  from  this  and  other  sources  were  so  great  that  he 
was  able  to  engage  in  the  construction  of  costly  works  in  aid  of 
navigation  in  the  harbor  of  Samos,  to  build  fortresses  and  temples, 
and  to  erect  for  himself  a  palace  on  a  scale  of  Oriental  magnifi- 
cence. He  maintained  a  splendid  court,  to  which,  among  other 
persons  of  fame  and  learning,  he  invited  the  celebrated  lyric  poet 
Anacreon,  a  native  of  Ionia,  who  seems  to  have  enjoyed  to  the  full 
the  gay  and  easy  life  of  a  courtier,  and  who,  inspired  by  the  con- 
genial atmosphere  of  his  patron's  palace,  sung  so  voluptuously 
of  love  and  wine  and  festivity  that  the  term  "Anacreontic"  has 
come  to  be  used  to  characterize  all  poetry  overredolent  of  these 
themes. 

The  astonishing  good  fortune  and  uninterrupted  prosperity  of 
the  tyrant  awakened,  according  to  Herodotus,  the  alarm  of  his 
friend  and  ally,  Amasis,  king  of  Egypt,  who  became  convinced  that 
such  felicity  in  the  lot  of  a  mortal  must  awaken  the  envy  of  the 
gods  (p.  54).  Accordingly  Amasis  wrote  his  friend  begging  him 
to  disarm  the  jealousy  of  the  celestials  by  sacrificing  his  most 
valued  possession.  Polycrates,  acting  upon  this  advice,  threw  into 
the  sea  a  precious  ring,  which  he  highly  prized ;  but  soon  after- 
wards the  jewel  was  found  by  his  servants  in  a  fish  that  a  fisherman 
had  brought  to  the  palace  as  a  present  for  Polycrates.  When 
Amasis  heard  of  this,  he  at  once  broke  off  his  alliance  with  the 


96  THE  AGE    OF   THE    TYRANTS. 

tyrant,  fully  persuaded  that  nothing  could  save  him  from  the  ter- 
rible reverse  of  fortune  which  he  was  fated  to  suffer.^ 

The  issue  justified  the  worst  fears  of  Amasis.  Shortly  afterwards, 
Polycrates  was  allured  to  the  Asian  shore  by  a  Persian  satrap,  a 
bitter  enemy  of  his,  and  put  to  a  shameful  and  cruel  death  and 
his  body  exposed  on  a  cross. 

The  tyranny  established  by  Polycrates  did  not  end  with  him, 
but  was  by  his  death  shorn  of  all  its  brilliancy.  When  we  come  to 
the  beginning  of  the  trouble  between  Hellas  and  Persia,  we  shall 
find  an  obscure  tyrant  upon  the  Samian  throne. 

Phalaris,  Tyrant  of  Agrigentum  (about  560-540  b.c). — 
Tyrants  arose  during  the  era  of  the  tyrannies,  in  the  Hellenic  cities 
of  the  West  as  well  as  in  those  of  the  East.  Among  the  Sicilian 
despots,  Phalaris  of  Agrigentum  was  the  most  notorious.  The 
atrocious  modes  of  punishing  his  enemies  which  he  is  said  to  have 
devised  has  caused  his  name  to  become  the  synonym  of  ingenious 
cruelty.  He  is  charged  with  having  cast  prisoners  into  the  crater 
of  ^tna;  with  having  boiled  others  alive  in  heated  caldrons; 
and  with  having  banqueted  on  the  flesh  of  children.^ 

The  tyrant's  master-device  of  cruelty,  however,  and  the  one 
which,  through  its  simple  terribleness,  has  fascinated  the  imagination 
of  the  world,  was  the  brazen  bull.  This  was  a  hollow  image,  into 
which  the  tyrant  is  said  to  have  shut  up  the  victims  of  his  displeasure, 
in  order  to  subject  them  to  the  torture  of  slow  burning  by  means  of 
a  fire  kindled  beneath  the  statue.  Through  an  ingenious  arrange- 
ment of  pipes  in  the  nostrils  of  the  image,  the  cries  of  the  sufferers 
were  transformed  into  the  bellowings  of  a  bull.  The  tradition  of 
this  instrument  of  torture,  with  an  artistic  regard  to  the  require- 
ments of  ideal  justice,  is  made  to  aver  that  the  inventor  of  the 
device,  and  the  person  who  had  persuaded  the  tyrant  of  its  merits 
as  an  instrument  of  government,  was  its  first  victim. 

Some  historical  critics  are  inclined  to  disbelieve  the  whole  story 
of  this  brazen  bull  in  so  far  as  regards  its  having  been  an  instru- 

1  Herod,  iii.  40-43. 

2  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  p.  428. 


BENEFITS   CONFERRED   BY    THE    TYRANTS.  97 

ment  of  torture  used  by  Phalaris,  and  suggest  that  the  tradition 
may  have  grown  out  of  some  features  of  the  Phoenician  worship, 
which  required  the  sacrifice  of  infants  in  the  fires  of  the  god 
Moloch.  Grote,  however,  regards  the  tradition  as  essentially  his- 
torical, and  believes  that  the  bull  found  by  the  Romans  at  Carthage 
when  they  destroyed  that  city  in  146  b.c.  ,  and  restored  by  them  to 
Agrigentum,  whence  it  had  been  taken  as  a  war  trophy  by  the 
Carthaginians,  was  the  very  image  within  which  the  tyrant  tortured 
his  enemies.^ 

The  tyrannous  rule  of  Phalaris  was  ended  by  a  revolt  of  his  out- 
raged subjects,  which  resulted  in  his  violent  death. 

Benefits  conferred  by  the  Tyrants  upon  Greek  Civilization. 
—  The  fact  that  tyrannies  arose  in  so  many  of  the  cities  of  the 
Greek  world  during  the  seventh  and  sixth  centuries  B.C.,  indicates 
that  the  state  of  Hellenic  society  at  this  period  rendered  necessary 
autocratic  government.  The  tyrants,  doubtless,  were  evoked  by 
some  need  of  the  times.  At  all  events,  their  rule  bridged  over  a 
transition  period  in  the  political  development  of  the  Greek  cities, 
and  conferred  upon  Greek  civilization  some  benefits  which,  per- 
haps, could  not  have  been  so  well  secured  under  any  other  form 
of  government. 

Thus  the  tyrants,  through  the  connections  which  they  naturally 
formed  with  foreign  kings  and  despots,  broke  the  isolation  in 
which  the  Greek  cities  up  to  this  time  had  hved.  Pheidon  of 
Argos  was  in  close  relations  with  the  Lydian  kings ;  Polycrates 
was  the  friend  and  ally  of  Amasis,  king  of  Egypt ;  and  the 
Cypselidae  were  also,  it  seems,  in  close  touch  with  the  reigning 
house  of  the  same  land.-  These  connections  between  the  courts 
of  the  tyrants  and  those  of  the  rulers  of  Oriental  countries 
opened  the  cities  of  the  Hellenic  world  to  the  influences  of  those 
lands  of  culture,  widened  their  horizon,  and  enlarged  the  sphere 
of  their  commercial  enterprise. 

1  See  Grote,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  iv.  p.  65 ;  also  Abbott,  History  of  Greece, 
vol.  ii,  pp.  428,  429. 

2  Witness  the  Egyptian  name,  Psammetichus,  of  the  last  of  the  race.     See  p.  94. 


98  THE  AGE    OF   7 HE    TYRANTS. 

Again,  the  tyrants,  some  of  them  at  least,  as  for  example  Peri- 
ander  of  Corinth,  Polycrates  of  Samos,  and  Peisistratus  of  Athens, 
were  liberal  patrons  of  art  and  literature.  Poetry  and  music 
flourished  in  the  congenial  atmosphere  of  their  luxurious  courts, 
while  architecture,  both  monumental  and  utilitarian,  was  given  a 
great  impulse  by  the  public  buildings  and  works  which  many  of 
them  undertook  with  a  view  of  embellishing  their  capitals,  or  of 
winning  the  favor  of  the  poorer  classes  by  creating  opportunities 
for  their  employment.  Thus  it  happened  that  the  age  of  the 
tyrants  was  a  period  marked  by  an  unusually  rapid  advance 
of  many  of  the  Greek  cities  in  their  artistic,  intellectual,  and 
industrial  life. 

Moreover,  the  tyrants  furthered  the  interests  of  religion,  through 
the  zeal  which  many  of  them  manifested  in  building  temples  and 
instituting  festivals  in  honor  of  the  gods.  Thus  we  see  Periander 
at  Corinth  adding  new  features  to  the  Isthmian  games,  and  mak- 
ing rich  gifts  to  the  shrines  at  Olympia;  and  Peisistratus  at 
Athens  not  only  giving  new  significance  and  splendor  to  the 
Athenian  festival  sacred  to  the  goddess  Athena,  —  to  whom  he 
believed  himself  especially  indebted  for  his  authority,  —  but  also 
beginning  the  erection  of  a  most  magnificent  temple  in  honor  of 
the  Olympian  Zeus.^ 

The  tyrants,  in  this  patronage  extended  by  them  to  religion, 
were  prompted  either  by  the  desire  of  securing  the  actual  favor 
of  the  guardian  deities,  or  were  moved  by  a  recognition  of  the 
value  to  a  ruler  of  at  least  appearing  to  be  pious.  In  the  one 
case  the  tyrant  received  the  support  of  the  gods,  in  the  other  that 
of  the  people,  who  would  naturally  regard  as  sacrilegious  any 
attempt  against  the  government  of  one  whose  rule  was  thus 
surrounded  by  the  sanctities  of  religion. 

In  the  political  realm  the  tyrants  also  rendered  eminent  services 
to  Greece.  By  depressing  the  oligarchies  and  lifting  the  people, 
they  created  a  sort  of  political  equality  between  these  rival  orders 
of  society,  and  thereby  helped  to  pave  the  way  for  the  incorning 

1  See  p.  117. 


TIMELY  OVERrilROW   OF  THE    TYRANTS.  99 

of  democracy.  In  this  respect  we  may  compare  the  outcome  of 
tyranny  among  the  ancient  Greeks  to  that  of  absolute  monarchy 
in  Western  Europe  in  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries, 
which,  by  reducing  all  classes  to  the  same  level  of  servitude, 
prepared  the  way  for  popular  government. 

In  still  another  way  —  in  the  way  imphed  in  Emerson's  maxim 
to  the  effect  that  bad  kings  help  us,  if  only  they  are  bad  enough 
—  did  the  tyrants  render  a  great  service  to  the  cause  of  constitu- 
tional government  in  the  Greek  cities.  As  we  have  seen,  they 
rendered  rule  by  a  single  person  unrestrained  by  law,  inexpres- 
sibly odious  to  the  Greeks,  and  thus  deepened  their  love  for  con- 
stitutional government  and  made  them  extremely  watchful  of  their 
freedom.  The  bare  suspicion  that  any  person  was  scheming  to 
make  himself  a  tyrant  was  often  enough  to  insure  his  immediate 
expulsion  from  the  city,  or  the  infliction  of  some  worse  punish- 
ment. 

Timely  Overthrow  of  the  Tyrants.  —  It  was  fortunate  for  Greek 
freedom  that  the  tyrants  were  so  generally  overthrown  before  the 
great  struggle  between  Greece  and  Persia  came  on.  Had  the 
Persian  invasion  of  Greece  occurred  while  the  tyrants  were  still 
in  power  at  Athens  and  in  the  other  cities  of  European  Greece, 
where  just  before  this  crisis  they  had  held  possession  of  the  gov- 
ernment, the  issue  of  the  Persian  assault  upon  those  states 
would  have  been,  it  seems  certain,  widely  different  from  what 
it  was.  The  tyrants  would  have  offered  little  or  no  resistance 
to  the  invaders,  but,  led  by  inclination  and  interest,  would  have 
hastened  to  secure  the  continuance  of  their  rule  by  becoming 
the  vassals  of  the  Great  King. 

But  between  the  Greek  democracies  and  the  Persian  despotism 
there  could  be  no  relations  of  steady  friendship  or  alliance,  — 
nothing  but  irreconcilable  antagonism.  And  then  it  was  only 
liberty  and  self-government  that  could  have  evoked  that  spirit 
of  patriotism  and  self-devotion  which  in  that  period  of  supreme 
peril  saved  the  Hellenic  world  from  subjection  to  the  yoke  of  the 
barbarians.     All  this  will  be  clearer  to  us  after  we  have  become 


100  THE  AGE    OF   THE    TYRANTS. 

acquainted  with  the  circumstances,  which  will  be  detailed  in  the 
next  chapter,  attendant  upon  the  overthrow  of  the  tyranny  of  the 
Peisistratidae  at  Athens  and  the  establishment  of  democratic  rule 
in  that  city,  and  later  have  witnessed  the  sacrifices  which  were 
freely  made  by  the  Athenian  citizens  in  the  maintenance  of  their 
popular  institutions  and  in  defense  of  the  common  liberties  of  the 
cities  of  Hellas. 

References.  —  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  ii.  pp. 
378-421;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  iii.  pp.  1-47.  AbhoW.,  History  of  Greece, 
vol.  i.  pp.  366-397.  Holm,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  ch.  xxii.  Fowler, 
The  City-State  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  chs.  iv.  and  v.  Rawlinson's 
Herodotus.  Consult  index  for  stories  of  Cypselus,  Polycrates,  and  Periander. 
Mahaffy,  Probleins  in  Greek  History,  ch.  iv.  Jowett's  Aristotle,  Politics.^  v. 
10-12.     Q,oyi,  Lives  of  Greek  Statesmen  :  "  Polykrates." 


THE   TNHABTTANTS   OF  ATT/CA.  101 


Fig.  19.     THE    ACROPOLIS    AT    .         .-...;         From  a  photograph.; 

CHAPTER   VII. 

THE    HISTORY   OF  ATHENS    UP  TO  THE   PERSIAN   WARS, 

The  Inhabitants  of  Attica.  —  The  inhabitants  of  Attica  sup- 
posed that  they  were  autochthones,  that  is,  that  their  race  had 
sprung  from  the  soil  itself.  History  says  nothing  of  their  origin, 
but  teaches  that  they  were  essentially  Ionian  in  race,  with  strains 
of  other  Hellenic  stocks  in  their  veins.  It  seems  certain  that  at 
the  time  of  the  Dorian  invasion  many  fugitives  from  other  lands, 
particularly  from  the  Peloponnesus,  found  an  asylum  in  Attica. 
Many  of  these  exiles  afterwards  joined  the  bands  of  Ionian  emi- 
grants who  at  that  time  were  seeking  new  homes  on  the  Asian 
shore,  but  some  at  least  appear  to  have  settled  permanently  in 
the  country  and  ultimately  to  have  been  absorbed  by  the  native 
population. 

The  fact  that  a  mixed  population  occupied  the  Attic  plain  is 
thought  by  some  to  be  the  secret  of  the  versatile,  many-sided, 
yet  well-balanced  character  which  distinguished,  the  Attic, people 
above  all  other  branches  of  the  Hellenic  rae'er  '"■>  «    ^   •         o 


102  THE  HISTORY  OF  ATHENS. 

One  important  fact  connected  with  the  prehistoric  settlement 
of  Attica  is  that  the  inhabitants  seem  never  to  have  been  sub- 
jected by  a  foreign  race,  as  happened  in  the  case  of  most  of  the 
districts  of  the  Peloponnesus  :  for  we  find  no  class  in  Attica  cor- 
responding, for  instance,  to  either  the  Helots  or  the  Periceci  of 
Laconia.  This  circumstance  had  much  to  do  in  determining  the 
course  and  character  of  Attic  history. 

Legendary  History  of  Attica  under  her  Kings  :  Theseus  and 
Codrus.  —  When,  in  the  seventh  century  B.C.,  the  mists  of  antiquity 
clear  away  from  the  plain  of  Attica,  Athens,  with  an  oligarchical 
government,  appears  as  a  city-state  embracing  the  whole  district. 
It  is  evident  that  this  condition  of  things  must  have  been  the  out- 
come of  a  very  long  prehistoric  development ;  but  of  the  incidents 
of  that  early  growth  of  Athens  we  are  left  in  almost  total  ignorance. 
It  is  certain,  however,  that  in  very  early  times,  Athens,  like  the 
other  Greek  cities,  was  under  the  rule  of  kings.  The  names  of 
Theseus  and  Codrus  are  the  most  noted  of  the  regal  line. 

To  Theseus,  as  we  have  seen  (p.  i8),  tradition  ascribed  the 
work  of  uniting  all  the  Attic  villages  or  townships,  of  which  the 
number  is  said  to  have  been  twelve,  into  a  single  city,  on  the  seat 
of  the  ancient  Cecropia  (p.  i6).  This  prehistoric  union,  however  or 
by  whomsoever  effected,  laid  the  basis  of  the  historical  greatness 
of  Athens,  and  therefore  is  of  such  importance  as  to  justify  our 
dwelling  for  a  moment  upon  it,  notwithstanding  that  the  whole 
matter  is  wrapped  in  great  obscurity. 

It  appears  certain  that  in  primitive  times  the  territory  of  Attica 
was  occupied  by  a  number  of  independent  communities,  of  which 
Athens,  or  Cecropia,  was  the  most  important.  This  town  it  was 
that  became  the  pohtical  home  for  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  several 
cantons  of  the  Attic  territory.  As  to  how  this  was  brought  about 
we  have,  as  we  have  already  said,  no  certain  information.  We 
may  safely  assume,  however,  that  the  union  was  a  work  of  time, 
and  that  it  was  effected,  in  part  at  least,  in  the  way  that  such 
achievements  are  usuj'lly  accomplished  —  by  much  hard  fighting. 
This  period  in  Athenian  history  has  been  well  compared  to  the 


THE  MONARCHY   TRANSFORMED.  103 

early  Anglo-Saxon  period  of  English  history,  the  work  of  the  con- 
sohdation  of  Attica  being  likened  to  the  absorption  by  Wessex  of 
the  other  Heptarchic  kingdoms. 

Thus  "  before  history  begins,  Athens  had  achieved  a  result  which 
Thebes  under  Epaminondas  was  unable  to  attain."  ^  How  much 
the  union  meant  for  Athens,  how  it  stood  related  to  her  ascen- 
dency afterwards  in  Greece,  is  perhaps  shown  by  the  history  of 
Thebes.  Although  holding  the  same  relation  to  Boeotia  that 
Athens  held  to  Attica,  Thebes  never  succeeded  in  uniting  the 
Boeotian  towns  into  a  single  city-state,  and  consequently  fretted 
away  her  strength  in  constant  bickerings  and  wars  with  them. 

Respecting  Codrus,  the  following  legend  is  told  :  At  one  time 
the  Dorians  from  the  Peloponnesus  invaded  Attica.  Codrus 
having  learned  that  an  oracle  had  assured  them  of  success  if  they 
spared  the  life  of  the  Athenian  king,  disguised  himself,  and,  with  a 
single  companion,  made  an  attack  upon  some  Spartan  soldiers, 
who  instantly  slew  him.  Discovering  that  the  king  of  Athens  had 
fallen  by  a  Lacedaemonian  sword,  the  Spartans  despaired  of  taking 
the  city,  and  withdrew  from  the  country. 

The  Monarchy  transformed  into  an  Oligarchy. — At  some 
unknown  period  in  the  history  of  the  monarchy  at  Athens  the 
royal  authority  was  limited  by  the  appointment  of  a  commander- 
in-chief  (Polemarch),  to  supply,  Aristotle  tells  us,  the  military 
ability  lacking  in  some  of  the  kings.  Later,  the  royal  power  was 
still  further  impaired  by  the  election  of  a  new  magistrate,  called 
Archon,  or  ruler,  whose  duties  seem  to  have  been  of  an  adminis- 
trative character.^  These  important  changes  in  the  Athenian  mon- 
archy were  manifestly  changes  effected  by  the  nobles,  and  in  the 
interest  of  their  own  order.  There  now  stood  at  the  head  of 
the  state  a  board  consisting  of  three  persons,  the  King,  the  Pole- 
march,  and  the  Archon. 

1  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  p.  28. 

2  It  is  uncertain  when  the  first  archon  was  elected,  though  Greek  tradition 
says  that  he  was  chosen  either  in  the  reign  of  Medon,  son  and  successor  of  Codrus, 
or  in  that  of  Acastus,  Medon's  successor.     Cf.  Arist.  Const,  of  Athens,  ch.  3. 


104  .      THE  HISTORY   OF  ATHENS. 

Under  this  arrangement  twelve  kings,  elected  by  the  nobles 
from  the  reputed  descendants  of  Codrus.  and  ruling  for  life,  filled 
the  regal  office.  Then  in  the  year  752  B.C.,  the  authority  and 
dignity  of  the  regal  office  was  still  further  diminished  by  the  limit- 
ing of  the  rule  of  the  king  to  a  term  of  ten  years.  The  monarchy 
was  henceforth  no  longer  a  monarchy  save  in  name.^ 

In  712  B.C.,  the  fourth  ten-year  king  having  been  deposed  for 
some  abuse  of  power,  the  office  was  thrown  open  to  all  the  nobles, 
and  soon  afterwards  (in  682  ?  B.C.)  the  term  of  office  was  reduced 
to  one  year.  At  the  same  time  the  offices  of  Polemarch  and 
Archon  were  also  made  annual  magistracies,  and  six  junior 
Archons,  called  Thesmothetse,  were  added  to  the  board. 

All  these  changes  mean  that  the  primitive  monarchy  at  Athens 
was,  during  prehistoric  times,  gradually  transformed  into  an  oligar- 
chy. In  this  long  constitutional  development  Athens  simply  par- 
ticipated in  that  political  revolution  which  during  the  period  in 
question  changed  the  form,  generally  in  the  interests  of  the  oligar- 
chical party,  of  the  government  in  probably  most  of  the  Greek 
cities.  At  the  beginning  of  the  historic  period,  the  Athenian 
constitution  had  assumed  the  form  outlined  in  the  following 
paragraph. 

The  Athenian  Constitution  about  the  Close  of  the  Seventh 
Century  B.C.  —  At  the  head  of  the  state  stood  what  we  may  call 
an  executive  and  judicial  board  of  nine  archons  or  magistrates, 
filling  the  place  of  the  old  Homeric  king.  The  three  highest  bore 
special  names,  as  follows :  Archon  Eponymus,  King- Archon,  and 
Polemarch.^  The  first  was  so  called  because  he  gave  his  name  to 
the  year,  just  as  in  earlier  times  dates  were  indicated  by  the  year 
of  the  reigning  sovereign.  He  is  alluded  to  as  The  Archon,  and 
when  the  term  "  Archon  "  is  used  without  any  qualifying  words  it  is 
the  Archon  Eponymus  that  is  meant.  The  King-Archon  repre- 
sented the  old  Basileus,  now  reduced  to  a  second  place  in  the 
state,  and  stripped  of  all  the  ancient  royal  functions  save  those  of 

1  Botsford,  The  Athenian  Constitution,  p.  125. 


CLASSES  IN   THE  ATHENIAN  STATE.  105 

a  religious  nature.  The  Polemarch  was  the  "  field-marshal ,"  the 
leader  in  war  of  the  military  forces  of  the  state.  The  other 
six  archons,  called,  as  already  noted,  Thesmothetse,  were  charged 
with  clerical  and  judicial  duties. 

Besides  this  board  of  magistrates,  there  was  a  very  important 
body  called  the  Council  (BovArj,  Boide)  of  the  Areopagus.'  This 
council  was  composed  exclusively  of  ex-archons,  and  consequently 
was  a  purely  aristocratic  body.  Its  members  held  office  for  life. 
The  duty  of  the  council  was  to  see  that  the  laws  were  duly  ob- 
served, and  to  judge  and  punish  transgressors.  There  was  no 
appeal  from  its  decisions.^  This  council  was,  at  the  opening  of 
the  historic  period,  the  real  power  in  the  Athenian  state. 

In  addition  to  the  magisterial  board  of  archons  and  the  Coun- 
cil of  the  Areopagus,  there  is  some  evidence  of  the  existence  of  a 
general  assembly  ('EK/<Ar;o-ta,  Ecclesid),  in  which  all  those  who 
served  in  the  heavy-armed  forces  of  the  state  had  a  place. 

Such,  in  the  seventh  century  b.c,  were  the  germs  of  the  politi- 
cal institutions  of  Athens  which  during  the  next  two  centuries 
were  to  exhibit  that  remarkable  expansion  which  is  described  in 
the  lately  found  AristoteHan  treatise  on  the  Athenian  constitution. 
After  having  said  a  word  respecting  the  classes  and  parties  in  the 
Athenian  state  at  this  early  period,  in  order  to  render  intelligible 
the  revolutions  of  which  we  shall  have  to  speak,  we  shall  proceed 
to  trace  the  development  of  the  constitution  of  Athens  up  to  the 
time  of  the  beginning  of  the  memorable  struggle  in  the  fifth  cen- 
tury between  Hellas  and  Persia. 

Classes  in  the  Athenian  State.  — The  leading  class  in  the 
Athenian  state  was  the  nobles  or  Eupatrids.  These  men  were 
wealthy  landowners,  a  large  part  of  the  best  soil  of  Attica,  it  is 
said,  being  held  by  them.  As  already  shown,  all  political  author- 
ity was  in  their  hands. 

Beneath  the  nobles  we  find   the   body  of  the    nominally  free 

1  So  called  from  the  name  of  the  hill,  "Apejos  iro7oy,  "  Hill  of  Ares,"  which  was 
the  assembling  place  of  the  council. 

2  Arist.  Const,  of  Athens,  ch.  3. 


106  THE  HISTORY   OF  ATHENS. 

inhabitants.  Many  of  them  were  tenants  hving  in  a  state  Httle 
removed  from  serfdom  upon  the  estates  of  the  wealthy  nobles. 
They  paid  rent  in  kind  to  their  landlords,  and  in  case  of  failure  to 
pay,  they,  together  with  their  wives  and  children,  might  be  seized 
by  the  proprietor  and  sold  as  slaves.^  Others  owned  their  little 
farms,  but  at  the  time  of  which  we  are  speaking  had  fallen  in  debt 
to  the  wealthy  class,  their  fields  being  heavily  mortgaged  to  the 
money  lenders.  Thus  because  of  their  wretched  economic  con- 
dition, as  well  as  because  of  their  exclusion  from  the  government, 
these  classes  among  the  common  people  were  filled  with  bitterness 
against  the  nobles  and  were  ready  for  revolution.  This  antago- 
nism between  the  two  orders  in  the  Athenian  state  is  similar  to  that 
which  we  find  at  Rome  between  the  patricians  and  the  plebeians. 
The  Rebellion  of  Cylon  (probably  628  or  624  b.c.).^  — The 
rule  of  the  oligarchs  was  far  from  being  satisfactory.  The  nobles 
were  divided  among  themselves,  and  the  common  people,  bur- 
dened with  debt,  and  treated  harshly  by  the  Eupatrid  magistrates, 
were  discontented  and  restive.  Taking  advantage  of  this  state  of 
things,  and  encouraged  by  his  father-in-law  Theagenes,  who  had 
made  himself  tyrant  of  Megara,  Cylon,  a  rich  and  ambitious 
Athenian  noble,  attempted  to  overthrow  the  government,  and  to 
take  to  himself  the  supreme  power.  With  the  aid  of  friends 
and  a  band  of  mercenaries,  he  seized  the  citadel  of  the  Acropolis. 
Here  he  was  closely  besieged.  Upon  the  rock  stood  a  temple  of 
Athena.  Being  hard  pressed,  the  companions  of  Cylon  —  he 
himself  had  escaped  through  the  lines  of  the  besiegers  —  sought 
refuge  within  the  shrine.  The  Archon  Megacles,  fearing  lest  the 
death  of  the  rebels  by  starvation  within  the  sacred  enclosure  should 
pollute  the  sanctuary,  offered  to  spare  their  lives  on  condition  of 

1  Arist.  Const,  of  Athens,  ch.  2. 

2  The  exact  date  is  uncertain,  though  the  rebellion  is  known  to  have  taken  place 
in  an  Olympic  year.  Before  the  discovery  of  Aristotle's  Constitution  of  Athens 
this  conspiracy  was  by  most  historians  placed  after  the  legislation  of  Draco.  See 
J.  H.  Wright,  The  Date  of  Cylon  (Harvard  Studies  in  Classical  Philology),  vol.  iii., 
1892;  also  Botsford,  The  Athenian  Constitution  (Cornell  Studies  in  Classical  Phi- 
lology),  p.  135. 


THE   LAWS  AND    CONSTITUTION   OF  DRACO.  107 

surrender.  Fearing  to  trust  themselves  among  their  enemies 
without  some  protection,  they  fastened  a  string  to  the  statue  of 
Athena,  and,  holding  fast  to  this,  descended  from  the  citadel  into 
the  streets  of  Athens.  As  they  came  in  front  of  the  altars  of  the 
Eumenides,  the  line  broke  ;  and  Megacles,  affecting  to  believe  that 
this  mischance  indicated  that  the  goddess  refused  to  them  protec- 
tion, caused  them  to  be  set  upon  and  massacred.^ 

This  crime  for  the  time  being  went  unpunished,  but  at  a  later 
day  the  people  avenged  it  by  driving  from  the  city  the  family  of 
which  Megacles  was  a  member  (p.  109,  n.  2). 

The  Laws  and  Constitution  of  Draco  (621  b.c).  —  A  short  time 
after  the  attempted  revolt  of  Cylon,  some  important  changes  were 
effected  in  the  constitution  and  the  laws  of  Athens.  The  people 
were  in  great  distress,  and  were  clamoring  for  a  revision  or  at  least 
pubHcation  of  the  laws,  so  that  they  might  be  secure  against  the 
exactions  and  cruelties  of  the  wealthy,  and  the  arbitrary  and 
unjust  decisions  of  the  Eupatrid  magistrates.  To  meet  these 
demands  of  the  people  and  to  save  the  state  from  anarchy,  the 
nobles  appointed  a  person  named  Draco,  one  of  their  own  order, 
to  remodel  the  constitution  and  draw  up  a  code  of  laws. 

The  most  important  constitutional  change  made  by  Draco 
related  to  the  election  of  magistrates.  These  had  hitherto  been 
chosen  by  the  Council  of  the  Areopagus.  This  important  function 
was  now  committed  to  the  Ecclesia,  or  popular  assembly,  in  which 
body  all  persons  had  a  place  who  were  able  to  provide  themselves 
with  a  full  military  equipment.  Moreover,  the  magistrates  were 
henceforth  to  be  chosen  not  exclusively  from  the  Eupatrids,  but 
from  all  persons  possessing  a  certain  property  quahfication,  the 
amount  of  property,  which  must  be  in  real  estate,  varying  with  the 
importance  and  character  of  the  office.  In  these  regulations 
respecting  the  qualification  and  the  mode  of  election  of  the  magis- 
trates, we  may  perhaps  recognize  the  first  step  in  the  democratiza- 
tion of  the  Athenian  constitution.^    Wealth  instead  of  birth  hence- 

1  Thucyd.  i.  126 ;  Plut.  Solon,  12. 

2  It  is  the  opinion  of  some  that  even  before  Draco's  time  wealth  was  one  of  the 


lOS  THE  HISTORY   OF  ATHENS. 

forth  conferred  the  right  to  participate  in  the  government.  The 
Ecclesia  from  this  time  on  drew  to  itself  a  constantly  increasing 
share  of  influence  and  power. 

Draco  further  modified  the  constitution  by  creating,  possibly  out 
of  elements  already  existing,  a  council  of  four  hundred  and  one 
members,  who  were  to  be  chosen  by  lot  out  of  the  whole  body  of 
citizens.  The  duties  of  this  council  were  probably  the  oversight 
of  elections  and  minor  matters  of  government,  and  the  prepa- 
ration of  measures  to  be  laid  before  the  Ecclesia. 

Besides  making  these  reforms  in  the  constitution,  Draco  drew  up 
and  published  a  code  of  laws.  He  here  probably  did  little  more  than 
to  reduce  unwritten  and  conflicting  rules,  decisions,  and  ordinances 
to  a  definite  and  written  form.  Tradition  says  that  the  legislator 
assigned  to  the  least  offence  the  penalty  of  death,  for  the  reason 
that  he  thought  all  violation  of  law  to  be  sin  against  the  gods  and 
hence  deserving  of  capital  punishment.  This  alleged  severity  of 
the  Draconian  laws  is  what  caused  a  later  Athenian  orator  to  say 
that  they  were  written,  "  not  in  ink,  but  in  blood."  The  laws 
doubtless  were  severe,  but  for  this  harshness  Draco  probably  was 
not  responsible ;  their  severity,  m  the  main,  must  be  regarded 
as  simply  a  reflection  of  the  callousness  of  an  early  and,  in  some 
respects,  still  barbarous  age. 

But  there  was  one  real  and  great  defect  in  Draco's  work.  He 
did  not  accomplish  anything  in  the  way  of  land  or  economic  re- 
form, and  thus  did  nothing  to  give  relief  to  those  who  were  strug- 
gling with  poverty  and  were  the  victims  of  the  harsh  laws  of  debt.^ 

Struggle  between  Athens  and  Megara  for  the  Possession  of 
Salamis  (about  610-600  b.  c.) — Shortly  after  the  Draconian 
reforms  a  war  broke  out  between  Athens  and  the  strong  commer- 
cial city  of  Megara  respecting  the  island  of  Salamis,  to  which 
both  laid  claim.  The  Athenians  were  at  first  worsted  with  great 
loss  in  the  struggle,  and  in  their  discouragement   passed  a  law 

qualifications  for  office,  and  that  his  reform  consisted  simply  in  making  more 
definite  these  qualifications. 

1  Aristotle  pictures  the  situation  in  these  words:  ktr\  hk  to7s  o-£i[/ia](rtv  -^aav 
SeSe^ufj/oj,  .   .   .   /coJ  tj  x^P^  ^*'  oXiywv  -liu.  — Ath.  Pol.  ch.  4. 


ECONOMIC  REFORMS    OR  RELIEF  MEASURES.         109 

forbidding  any  one  ever  to  bring  forward  a  proposal  to  renew 
the  war. 

At  this  juncture  of  affairs  there  appeared  among  the  Athenians 
a  man  destined  to  a  great  reputation  among  his  contemporaries 
and  to  a  still  wider  fame  in  later  ages.  This  was  Solon,  a  man 
sprung  from  the  ranks  of  the  nobles,  and  belonging  to  a  family 
reckoning  their  descent  from  the  sea-god  Poseidon.  He  possessed 
in  rare  combination  the  talents  of  the  poet,  the  orator,  and  the 
statesman.  Feeling  deeply  the  shame  of  surrendering  Salamis  to 
the  enemy,  he  labored  to  inspire  the  x^thenians  to  renewed  efforts 
for  its  acquisition.  He  declared  that  he  would  rather  become  a 
citizen  of  some  petty  island,  "  than  be  still  named  an  Athenian, 
branded  with  the  shame  of  surrendered  Salamis." 

Brought  to  a  more  resolute  mind  by  the  stirring  words  of  the 
patriot-poet,  the  Athenians,  choosing  him  to  be  their  leader,  re- 
sumed the  war.  The  struggle  now  went  on  for  a  long  time  with 
varying  fortunes,  until  both  parties  wearying  of  the  contest,  the 
Spartans  were,  through  mutual  agreement,  called  in  as  arbitrators. 
Partly  on  the  strength  of  a  legend  running  back  to  the  Trojan 
War,  and  which  represented  the  island  as  about  that  time  coming 
into  the  possession  of  the  Athenians,  the  arbitrators  rendered  a 
decision  in  their  favor,  and  Salamis  passed  into  their  hands. ^ 

Economic  Reforms  or  Relief  Measures  of  Solon  (594  b.c). — 
The  long  war  with  Megara  had  helped  to  render  still  more 
unendurable  the  economic  condition  of  the  poorer  classes  of 
Athenians,  and  to  render  still  more  urgent  some  extraordinary 
measures  of  relief.  Attica  threatened  to  become  depopulated 
through  the  great  number  of  unfortunate  debtors  who  were  daily 
sold  into  slavery  in  foreign  lands.  ^ 

Once  more,  as  a  generation  before,  in  the  time  of  Draco,  the 

1  The  lands  of  the  island  were  allotted  to  Athenian  settlers,  who  formed  a  sort  of 
military  colony  —  the  first  of  the  cleruchies  established  by  Athens.    See  p.  tj,  n. 

2  Along  with  economic  distress  there  was  great  religious  disquietude.  In  the 
midst  of  their  misery  the  people  became  filled  with  superstitious  fears  and  persuaded 
themselves  that  the  gods  were  visiting  them  in  anger  because  of  the  unexpiated 
crime  of  Megacles  (p.  107).    They  accordingly  demanded  and  secured  the  banish- 


110  THE   HISTORY   OF  ATHENS, 

Athenians  placed  their  laws  and  constitution  in  the  hands  of  a 
single  man,  to  be  remodelled  as  he  might  deem  best.  Solon, 
whose  lofty  character  and  distinguished  services  to  the  state  had 
won  for  him  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  all  classes,  was  selected 
to  discharge  this  responsible  duty. 

Solon  turned  his  attention  first  to  relieving  the  misery  of  the 
debtor  class.  His  remedial  measures  here  were  heroic,  but 
the  situation  was  desperate.  He  cancelled  all  debts  of  every 
kind,^  both  pubHc  and  private.  The  debtor-slave  was  set  free, 
and  the  heavily  mortgaged  fields  of  the  poor  farmers  were  disbur- 
dened. Moreover,  that  there  might  never  again  be  seen  in 
Attica  the  spectacle  of  men  dragged  off  in  chains  to  be  sold  as 
slaves  in  payment  of  their  debts,  Solon  prohibited  the  practice  in 
J>  the  future  of  securing  debts  on  the  body  of  the  debtor.  No 
Athenian  after  this  was  ever  sold  for  debt.  Commenting  upon 
this  Solonian  ordinance,  the  historian  Ranke  says  :  "  Solon's  laws 
respecting  debtors  may  perhaps  be  regarded  as  one  of  the  first 
steps  towards  the  recognition  of  human  dignity." 

Other  economic  regulations  of  Solon  forbade  the  taking  of 
exorbitant  interest  on  loans,  and  the  holding  by  any  single  pro- 
prietor of  more  than  a  specified  amount  of  land. 

Solon  also  effected  an  important  reform  in  the  monetary  sys- 
tem.^ The  money  in  use  at  this  time  in  Athens  was  that  of  the 
Pheidonian  coinage  (p.  60),  which,  as  we  have  seen,  circulated 
particularly  among  the  Dorian  cities.     Solon  adopted  the  Euboeic 

ment  of  the  Alcmaeonidse,  the  family  to  which  Megacles  belonged.  Even  the 
bones  of  the  dead  of  the  family  were  dug  up  and  cast  beyond  the  frontiers  of  the 
Athenian  land.  But  even  yet  the  wrath  of  the  gods  seemed  unappeased,  for  calam- 
ities still  continued  to  befall  the  people.  Therefore,  acting  in  accordance  with  the 
advice  of  the  Delphian  oracle,  the  Athenians  sent  for  Epimenides,  a  venerable  and 
holy  seer  of  Crete,  who  by  sacrifices  and  expiatory  rites  cleansed  the  city  and 
brought  the  people  into  a  calmer  and  more  reasonable  mood.  This  visit  of 
Epimenides  to  Athens  is  thought  to  have  been  made  in  the  year  596  B.C. 

1  This  measure  was  known  as  the  Seisachtheia,  that  is  "  the  shaking  off  of 
burdens." 

2  There  was  no  connection  between  this  measure  and  the  cancellation  of  debts, 
as  was  believed  before  the  discovery  of  the  ^Adrfvaiwy  UoMTcia  of  Aristotle. 


CONSTITUTIONAL   REFORMS   OF  SOLON.  Ill 

scale,  which  was  that  in  use  in  the  cities  of  Euboea  and  in  other 
Ionian  towns  of  Asia  Minor.  This  brought  Athens  into  closer 
commercial  relation  with  the  Ionian  portion  of  the  Hellenic 
world,  and  helped  greatly  to  foster  her  industries  and  trade. 

Constitutional  Reforms  of  Solon. —  Such  were  the  monetary 
and  the  most  important  of  the  economic  reforms  of  Solon.  His 
constitutional  reforms  were  equally  wise  and  beneficent,  and  of 
the  very  greatest  significance  for  the  history  of  the  Athenian 
democracy.  He  effected  important  changes  in  the  Ecclesia,  the 
Council  of  Four  Hundred  and  One  which  Draco  had  created, 
and  the  Areopagus. 

The  Draconian  innovations  had  created  the  Ecclesia,  or  at 
least  given  significance  to  that  body.  The  assembly  was  com- 
posed at  this  time  of  all  those  persons  who  were  able  to  provide 
themselves  with  arms  and  armor,  that  is  to  say,  of  all  the  members 
of  the  three  highest  of  the  four  property  classes  ^  into  which  the 
people  were  divided.  The  fourth  class,  the  Thetes,  were  ex- 
cluded. Solon  opened  the  Ecclesia  to  them.^  But  while  becom- 
ing members  of  the  public  assembly,  and  acquiring  the  right  to 
participate  in  the  election  of  magistrates  and  to  vote  on  such 
matters  as  might  come  before  the  assembly,  the  Thetes  did  not 
acquire  the  privilege  of  holding  office,  but  as  an  offset  to  this  were 
not  subject  to  direct  taxation.  At  the  same  time  the  Thetes  were 
admitted  to  the  dicasteries,  or  popular  jury-courts,  by  which,  in- 
stead of  by  the  Areopagus  as  hitherto,  all  magistrates  charged 
with  any  wrong  were  to  be  tried.^  This  was  a  most  important 
step  in  the  democratization  of  the  Athenian  state  ;  the  magistrates 

1  These  classes  bore  the  following  names :  Pentekosiomedimni,  those  citizens 
whose  yearly  income  from  landed  property  amounted  to  500  or  more  medimni  of 
corn  (about  750  English  bushels)  ;  Hlppels  (knights) ,  those  whose  income  from 
land  fell  between  500  and  300  medimni;  ZeugitcB  (possessors  of  a  yoke  of  oxen), 
those  whose  income  from  land  was  between  300  and  200  medimni;  and  Thetes 
■(serfs  or  hired  laborers) ,  those  whose  income  from  land  was  less  than  200  medimni. 

2  At  the  same  time  Solon  made  a  new  census  and  redistribution  of  the  citizens 
among  the  four  property  classes.  The  disburdening  ordinance,  changing  as  it  did 
the  economic  status  of  so  many  persons,  had  rendered  this  necessary. 

3  But  only  after  the  expiration  of  their  term  of  office. 


112  THE  HISTORY   OF  ATHENS. 

were  henceforth  responsible  to  the  people,  being  now  both  elected 
by  them  and  judged  by  them. 

The  Council  of  Four  Hundred  and  One,  called  into  existence 
by  the  Draconian  legislation,  was  reorganized  by  Solon.  It  was 
henceforth  to  consist  of  four  hundred  members,  each  tribe  ^  con- 
tributing one  hundred.  One  of  its  chief  duties  seems  to  have 
been  to  prepare  the  measures  to  be  laid  before  the  Ecclesia. 

The  Areopagus  remained,  under  the  Solonian  constitution,  the 
guardian  of  the  laws  and  the  protector  of  the  constitution,  punish- 
ing without  appeal  lawbreakers  and  conspirators  against  the  state. 
Before  all  else  was  it  to  maintain  a  strict  censorship  of  pubHc  and 
private  morals. 

Respecting  the  archons,  Solon  made  in  the  constitution  the 
following  change,  which  was  of  vital  importance,  particularly  to 
the  common  people.  He  provided  that  henceforth  any  person 
who  deemed  himself  wronged  by  a  decision  of  the  archons  might 
appeal  his  cause  to  a  popular  court.  Since  the  Eupatrid  magis- 
trates often  perverted  justice  in  the  interests  of  their  own  order, 
or  of  those  able  to  purchase  their  favor,  this  privilege  of  appeal 
offered  a  safeguard  against  magisterial  insolence  and  oppression. 

Special  Laws  enacted  by  Solon.  —  Besides  the  above  rehef 
measures  and  constitutional  reforms  of  Solon,  the  legislator  enacted 
various  laws  having  diverse  aims  and  purposes.  The  most  noted 
of  these  ordinances  is  his  so-called  Sedition  Law.  Observing  that 
in  the  frequent  poHtical  contentions  that  disturbed  the  state,  some 
of  the  citizens,  consulting  their  personal  comfort,  refrained  from 
taking  part  in  the  fight  between  the  contending  factions,  Solon 

1  The  population  of  Attica  comprised  originally  four  tribes  (0uAat).  The  names 
of  these  were  as  follows  :  Geleontes,  Hopletes,  ^gicores,  and  Argades.  The 
origin  and  exact  nature  of  these  so-called  tribes,  whether  ethnic  groups  or  industrial 
classes  or  castes,  is  not  known  to  us.  Each  of  the  tribes  contained  three  phratries 
or  brotherhoods  {(pparpiat) ;  each  phratry  was  composed  of  thirty  gentes  (yevv) , 
and  each  gens  was  made  up  of  thirty  families.  As  the  consolidation  of  the  Athe- 
nian state  advanced,  the  division  lines  of  these  groups  grew  more  and  more  obscure 
and  confused,  and  new  territorial  subdivisions  of  the  people  were  made  for  admin- 
istrative purposes. 


THE    TRAVELS   OF  SOLON.  113 

made  a  law  to  the  effect  that  any  one  faiUng  to  take  sides  on 
such  an  occasion  should  forfeit  his  citizenship  and  be  regarded  as 
infamous.  Solon's  idea  seems  to  have  been  that  by  this  measure 
he  would  secure  the  more  general  participation  in  political  affairs 
of  "  good  citizens,"  and  at  the  same  time  deter  unprincipled  per- 
sons from  stirring  up  sedition,  by  making  them  apprehensive  of 
a  general  uprising  of  the  people.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that 
among  the  measures  urged  by  modern  reformers  to  correct  the  evils 
of  modern  democracy,  is  found  one  —  compulsory  voting  — •  which 
in  principle  is  wholly  like  the  Sedition  Law  of  the  Athenian  states- 
man. 

By  other  laws,  Solon  limited  the  amount  of  land  that  any  single 
person  might  hold ;  specified  on  what  conditions  an  alien  might 
become  a  citizen  of  Athens,  and,  by  making  these  conditions 
easy,  opened  the  door  of  Athenian  citizenship  to  many  hitherto 
excluded  from  any  lot  or  part  in  the  government ;  prohibited,  in 
the  interests  of  the  manufacturing  class,  the  exportation  of  all  Attic 
products,  save  the  oil  of  the  olive ;  in  the  interests  of  industry  in 
general,  enjoined  upon  the  Areopagus  the  chastisement  of  all 
idlers ;  in  the  interests  of  the  individual  and  the  general  welfare, 
enacted  that  to  the  father  who  had  neglected  to  teach  his  son  a 
trade,  that  son  might  refuse  support ;  and  in  the  interest  of 
womanly  modesty  and  morality,  made  many  stringent  regulations 
respecting  marriage  dowers,  and  the  appearance  and  conduct  of 
women  in  public.  For  instance,  no  woman  was  to  appear  upon 
the  street  after  dark,  unless  in  a  chariot  preceded  by  a  torch-bearer. 
"  This  law  marks  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  the  Athenian  family. 
Heretofore  the  wife  enjoyed  great  freedom,  went  abroad  at  pleasure, 
and  indulged  her  tastes  apparently  without  hindrance.  Now  the  old 
freedom  of  Homeric  days  began  to  be  restricted.  The  wife  came 
to  be  confined  more  and  more  to  the  house,  and  her  influence  on 
the  public  life  of  Athens  waned  through  the  succeeding  years."  ^ 

The  Travels  of  Solon. —  Legends  of  a  later  generation  gath- 
ered thick-  about  the  name  of  Solon,  as  about  the  name  of  the 

1  Botsford,  The  Athenian  Constitution,  p.  178. 


114  THE  HISTORY   OF  ATHENS. 

Spartan  lawgiver  Lycurgus.  Like  Lycurgus,  he  is  said,  after  his 
reform  of  the  Athenian  laws,  to  have  gone  on  travels  in  foreign 
lands.  The  reason  generally  assigned  for  his  leaving  Athens 
was  the  annoyances  to  which  he  was  subjected  by  everybody 
asking  him  questions  about  his  laws,  censuring  him  for  his  inno- 
vations, or  importuning  him  to  make  additional  changes  in  the 
constitution.  Before  setting  out  on  his  travels,  Solon  is  said  to 
have  persuaded  the  people  to  take  an  oath  not  to  change  for  one 
hundred  years  the  laws  he  had  given  them. 

The  tradition  carries  Solon  to  Egypt,  Cyprus,  and  Lydia,  and 
represents  him  as  being  received  everywhere  with  the  veneration 
due  his  wisdom  and  character.  His  alleged  visit  to  the  Lydian 
court,  and  his  interview  with  the  king  Croesus,  forms  the  basis  of 
one  of  Herodotus'  most  charming  tales.  After  having  shown 
Solon  all  his  treasures,  the  king  asked  him  whom  he  deemed  the 
most  happy  of  men.  Solon  rephed,  "Tellus  of  Athens,"  a  plain 
citizen  of  that  city  who  had  died  fighting  for  his  country.  Croesus 
then  inquired  of  the  sage  whom  after  Tellus  he  esteemed  the 
happiest,  thinking  that  he  would  assign  to  him  at  least  the  second 
place.  But  this  place  Solon  gave  to  two  youths  of  Argos,  who, 
after  the  performance  of  a  great  feat  of  strength  and  endurance  in 
which  they  had  greatly  honored  their  mother  and  themselves,  fell 
asleep  in  a  temple  and  died  without  awakening. 

Hereupon  Croesus  exclaimed  angrily :  "  Athenian  stranger,  do 
you  then  so  lightly  estimate  my  happiness  that  you  do  not  even 
regard  me  as  of  equal  worth  with  private  men?  " 

Solon  replied  in  effect  that  the  gods  are  jealous  and  delight  in 
troubling  men,  and  that  since  fortune  is  fickle,  ruin  often  following 
prosperity,  no  man  may  be  accounted  happy  until  his  Ufe  has 
closed  peaceably  and  well.^ 

It  must  be  added  that  this  story  is  probably  a  pure  embellish- 
ment by  the  Greek  imagination  of  the  travels  of  Solon,  since 
Croesus  at  this  time  had  not  acquired  the  wealth  and  fame  which 
the  tale  presupposes. 

1  Herod,  i.  30-32. 


PEISISTRATUS  MAKES  HIMSELF   TYRANT.  115 

Peisistratus  makes  himself  Tyrant  of  Athens  (560  b.c). — 
Upon  his  return  to  Athens,  Solon  found  the  state  the  prey  of  civil 
discord.  The  constitutional  machinery  failed  to  work  smoothly, 
and  some  years  no  archon  was  elected.^  There  were  various 
factions  in  the  state.  Some  were  feeling  angry  because  of  Solon's 
abolition  of  debts,  which  measure  had  ruined  them ;  others  were 
dissatisfied  with  the  new  constitution  because  by  it  they  were 
shorn  of  power  ;  and  still  others  were  stirred  by  ambitions  which 
led  them  to  foment  trouble  in  the  hope  of  furthering  their  personal 
interests. 

The  important  parties  were  known  as  the  Shore,  the  Plain,  and 
the  Hill,  being  so  named  from  the  regions  of  Attica  in  which  was 
found  the  chief  strength  of  the  respective  factions.  The  Shoremen 
formed  the  moderate  constitutional  party ;  the  men  of  the  Plain, 
consisting  chiefly  of  large  landowners,  formed  the  oligarchical 
party ;  the  men  of  the  Hill,  made  up  largely  of  shepherds,  were 
ardent  democrats. 

The  last-named  faction,  the  mountaineers,  were  led  by  Peisis- 
tratus, an  ambitious  noble  and  a  nephew  of  the  lawgiver  Solon. 
This  man  courted  popular  favor,  and  called  himself  "  the  friend  of 
the  people."  His  uncle  Solon  seems  to  have  been  almost  the 
only  man  who  penetrated  his  designs.  He  told  the  citizens  that 
Peisistratus  was  aiming  to  make  himself  tyrant  of  Athens.  But 
the  people  paid  no  heed  to  the  warnings  of  Solon,  and  Peisistratus 
was  left  undisturbed  to  consummate  his  plot  against  the  liberties 
of  the  city. 

One  day  having  inflicted  many  wounds  upon  himself,  he  drove 
his  chariot  hastily  into  the  public  square,  and  pretended  that  he 
had  been  thus  set  upon  by  the  nobles,  because  of  his  devotion  to 
the  people's  cause.  The  people,  moved  by  sympathy  and  indigna- 
tion, voted  him  a  guard  of  fifty  men.  Under  cover  of  raising  this 
company,  Peisistratus  gathered  a  much  larger  force,  seized  the 
Acropolis,  and  made  himself  master  of  Athens.     Though    twice 

1  In  the  year  581  B.C.  the  archonship  was  usurped  by  the  archon  (Damasias) 
elected  for  the  preceding  year,  but  he  was  finally  forcibly  deposed. 


116  THE   HISTORY  OF  ATHENS. 

expelled  from  the  city  by  the  combination  of  the  parties  of  the 
Shore  and  the  Plain  against  him,  still  he  as  often  returned,  and 
reinstated  himself  in  the  tyranny. 

The  first  restoration  of  the  tyrant  was  accomplished  by  a  singular 
device,  which,  as  Herodotus  remarks,  shows  the  extreme  simplicity 
of  the  Athenians.  Those  concerned  in  the  plot  to  restore  the 
tyrant  set  afloat  a  rumor  to  the  effect  that  the  goddess  Athena 
was  herself  leading  Peisistratus  back  to  the  city.  Presently  a 
t^hariot  appeared  in  which  alongside  Peisistratus  stood  a  beautiful 
woman  dressed  to  personate  the  patron-goddess.  The  ex-tyrant 
and  the  goddess  were  received  by  the  credulous  people  with 
amazed  veneration,  and  thus  the  tyranny  was  re-established.^ 

Peisistratus  died  527  B.C.,  thirty-three  years  after  his  first  seiz- 
ure of  the  citadel.  Of  all  these  years  he  had  actually  held  the 
tyranny  probably  not  more  than  eighteen  or  twenty ;  during  the 
remainder  he  had  been  in  exile,  scheming  to  regain  his  power  at 
Athens. 

Character  of  the  Rule  of  Peisistratus.  —  Peisistratus  gave 
Athens  a  mild  rule,  and  under  him  the  city  enjoyed  a  period 
of  great  prosperity.  He  may  be  taken  as  a  type  of  the  better 
class  of  Greek  tyrants,  and  much  that  was  said  in  an  earlier 
chapter^  respecting  the  domestic  and  foreign  poHcies  of  these 
rulers  finds  illustration  in  the  circumstances  of  his  reign. 

The  usurper  supported  his  power,  as  many  of  the  other  tyrants 
did,  by  means  of  a  body-guard  of  mercenaries,  and  met  the  ex- 
penses of  his  government  by  a  careful  husbandry  of  all  the  ordinary 
revenues  of  the  city,  and  by  taxation.  He  maintained  the  forms 
of  the  constitution  of  Solon,  but  took  care  that  all  the  chief  offices 
should  be  held  by  his  relatives  or  adherents.  Following  the  policy 
of  many  another  usurper,  he  sought  to  render  the  industrial  classes 
contented  with  his  government  by  giving  encouragement  to  both 
commerce  and  agriculture. 

It  was,  as  we  have  seen,  the  general  policy  of  the  tyrants  to 

1  Herod,  i.  60;  cf.  Arist.  Const,  of  Athens,  ch.  14. 

2  See  ch.  vi. 


CHARACTER    OF   THE   RULE    OE  PEISTSTRATUS.       117 

Strengthen  themselves  by  means  of  foreign  alliances.  This  we  find 
Peisistratus  doing.  He  entered  into  alliances  with  Sparta,  Thebes, 
Macedonia,  Samos,  —  at  this  time  in  the  hands  of  the  tyrant 
Polycrates  (p.  94),  — and  other  states.  Through  these  various 
connections  Peisistratus  made  firmer  his  position  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  while  giving  at  the  same  time  a  wider  range  to  the  grow- 
ing fame  of  Athens,  and  enlarging  the  field  of  enterprise  of  the 
Athenian  traders. 

But  before  all  else  was  the  tvrant.  in  imitation  of  so  manv  others 


Fig.  20.  RUINS  OF  THE  GREAT  TEMPLE  OF  ZEUS  OLYMPIUS  AT  ATHENS.  (Be- 
gun by  the  tyrant  Peisistratus  and  connpleted  seven  centuries  later  by  the  Roman  Ennperor 
Hadrian.     From  a  photograph.) 

of  his  class,  a  hberal  patron  of  the  gods  (p.  98).  He  established 
what  was  known  as  the  Great  Panathenaea,  a  festival  celebrated 
every  fourth  year  in  honor  of  Athena ;  ^  instituted  a  new  festival  in 
honor  of  Dionysus  ;  caused  the  sacred  island  of  Delos  to  be  puri- 
fied through  the  removal  of  all  the  tombs  from  the  vicinity  of  the 
shrines  of  Apollo ;  and  lastly,  began  at  Athens  the  erection  of  a 

1  The  annual  festival  in  honor  of  the  same  patron  goddess  continued  to  be 
celebrated  as  hitherto,  but  henceforth  was  known  as  the  Less  Panathenaea. 


118 


THE  HISTORY  OF  ATHENS. 


temple  to  Zeus  Olympius  on  such  a  magnificent  scale  that  it  re- 
mained unfinished  until  the  resources  of  the  Roman  Emperor 
Hadrian,  nearly  seven  hundred  years  later,  carried  the  colossal 
building  to  completion. 

Nor  did  Peisistratus  fail  to  follow  the  traditional  policy  of  the 
tyrants  in  respect  to  the  patronage  of  letters.  He  invited  to  his 
court  the  literary  celebrities  of  the  day.     He  is  said  to  have  caused 

the  Homeric  poems  to  be  col- 
lected and  edited,  and  to  have 
gathered  at  Athens  the  first 
public  library;  but  the  testi- 
mony for  the  truth  of  these 
traditions  is  not  of  the  highest 
character.  He  is  said  also  to 
have  added  to  the  embeUish- 
ments  of  the  Lyceum,  a  sort 
of  public  park  just  outside 
the  city  walls,  which  was  filled 
with  shady  groves,  inviting 
porches,  and  pleasant  prome- 
nades, and  which  in.  after  times 
became  one  of  the  favorite 
resorts  of  the  poets,  philoso- 
phers, and  pleasure-seekers  of 
the  capital. 

Expulsion  of  the  Tyrants 
from  Athens  (510B.C.). — The 
two  sons  of  Peisistratus,  Hip- 
pias  and  Hipparchus,  suc- 
ceeded to  his  power.  At  first  they  emulated  the  example  of  their 
father,  and  Athens  flourished  under  their  rule.  But  at  length  an 
unfortunate  event  gave  an  entirely  different  tone  to  the  government. 
Hipparchus,  having  insulted  a  young  noble,  named  Harmodius, 
this  man,  in  connection  with  his  friend  Aristogeiton  and  some 
others,  planned  to  assassinate  both  the  tyrants.     Hipparchus  was 


Fig.  21.  THE  ATHENIAN  TYRANNICIDES,  HAR- 
MODIUS AND  ARISTOGEITON.  (Marble 
statues  in  the  Naples  Museum,  recognized  as 
ancient  copies  of  the  bronze  statues  set  up  at 
Athens  in  comnnennoration  of  the  assassination  of 
the  tyrant  Hipparchus.) 


EXPULSION  OF   THE    TYRANTS  FROM  ATHENS.       119 

slain,  but  the  plans  of  the  conspirators  miscarried  as  to  Hippias. 
Harmodius  was  struck  down  by  the  guards  of  the  tyrants,  and 
Aristogeiton,  after  having  been  tortured  in  vain  in  order  to  force 
him  to  reveal  the  names  of  the  other  conspirators,  was  put  to  death. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  how  tyrannicide  appeared  to  the 
Greek  mind  as  an  eminently  praiseworthy  act  (p.  91).  This  is 
well  illustrated  by  the  grateful  and  venerated  remembrance  in 
which  Harmodius  and  Aristogeiton  were  ever  held  by  the  Athe- 
nians. Statues  were  raised  in  their  honor,  and  the  story  of  their 
deed  was  rehearsed  to  the  youth  as  an  incentive  to  patriotism  and 
self-devotion. 

The  plot  had  a  most  unhappy  effect  upon  the  disposition  of 
Hippias.  It  caused  him  to  become  suspicious  and  severe.  His 
rule  now  became  a  tyranny  indeed,  and  was  brought  to  an  end  in 
the  following  way. 

After  his  last  return  to  Athens,  Peisistratus  had  sent  the  "ac- 
cursed "  Alcmgeonidie  into  a  second  exile.  During  this  period  of 
banishment  an  opportunity  arose  for  them  to  efface  the  stain 
of  sacrilege  which  was  still  supposed  to  cling  to  them  on  account 
of  the  old  crime  of  Megacles  (p.  107).  The  temple  at  Delphi 
having  been  destroyed  by  fire,  they  contracted  with  the  Amphic- 
tyons  to  rebuild  it.  They  not  only  completed  the  work  in  the 
most  honorable  manner  throughout,  but  even  went  so  far  beyond 
the  terms  of  their  contract  as  to  use  beautiful  Parian  marble  for 
the  front  of  the  temple,  when  only  common  stone  was  required 
by  the  specifications. 

By  this  act  —  a  pious  and  generous  one,  had  it  only  been  wholly 
disinterested  —  the  exiled  family  won  to  such  a  degree  the  favor 
of  the  priests  of  the  sacred  college  that  they  were  able  to  influ- 
ence the  utterances  of  the  oracle.  The  invariable  answer  now  of 
the  Pythia  to  Spartan  inquirers  at  the  shrine  was,  "  Athens  must 
be  set  free." 

Moved  at  last  by  the  repeated  injunctions  of  the  oracle,  the 
Spartans  resolved  to  drive  Hippias  from  Athens.  Their  first 
attempt  was  unsuccessful ;   but  in  a  second,  made  in  connection 


120  THE   HISTORY   OF  ATHENS. 

with  the  Alcmseonidae  headed  by  Cleisthenes,  they  were  so  fortu- 
nate as  to  capture  the  two  children  of  Hippias,  who,  to  secure 
their  release,  agreed  to  leave  the  city  (510  B.C.).  He  retired  to 
Asia  Minor,  and  spent  the  rest  of  his  life,  as  we  shall  learn  here- 
after, seeking  aid  in  different  quarters  to  re-establish  his  tyranny 
in  Athens.  The  Athenians  passed  a  decree  of  perpetual  exile 
against  him  and  all  his  family. 

Renewal  of  Party  Strife  (509-508  b.c).  —  Straightway  upon 
the  expulsion  of  the  tyrant  Hippias,  there  arose  a  great  strife 
between  the  commons  led  by  Cleisthenes,  who  of  course  wished 
to  conduct  the  government  on  the  lines  drawn  by  Solon,  and  the 
nobles,  headed  by  Isagoras,  who  aimed  at  the  restoration  of  the 
old  oligarchical  rule. 

Isagoras,  finding  himself  overmatched  by  the  popular  party, 
which  the  incidents  of  the  tyranny  had  strengthened,  appealed  for 
aid  to  his  personal  friend  Cleomenes,  king  of  Sparta.  Cleomenes 
responded  by  first  demanding  of  the  Athenians  that  they  cast  out 
from  among  them  "the  accursed."  This  blow  was  aimed  par- 
ticularly at  Cleisthenes,  upon  whom  was  assumed  to  rest  the 
family  curse  incurred  by  his  ancestor  Megacles  (p.  107),  —  and 
did  not  fail  to  produce  the  effect  intended ;  for,  apprehensive  of 
the  result  of  this  appeal  to  the  superstitious  feelings  of  the  people, 
Cleisthenes,  with  some  of  his  closest  friends,  withdrew  from 
Athens.  Cleomenes,  at  the  head  of  a  small  band  of  soldiers, 
soon  after  arrived  at  the  city,  and,  prompted  by  Isagoras,  drove 
into  exile  seven  hundred  families  belonging  to  the  party  of 
Cleisthenes. 

But  the  patriotism  of  the  Athenians  seems  to  have  been  stirred 
by  this  insolent  interference  by  foreigners  in  their  affairs.  Their 
threatening  attitude  frightened  Cleomenes,  and  led  him,  with  his 
friends  and  followers,  to  seek  refuge  in  the  citadel  of  the  Acrop- 
olis. Here  he  was  besieged  by  the  people,  and  in  a  short  time 
compelled  to  surrender.  To  avoid  incurring  the  revenge  of  the 
Spartans,  the  Athenians  did  not  deal  harshly  with  Cleomenes,  but 
allowed  him  and  his  Spartan  soldiers,  together  with  Isagoras,  to 


THE    CONSTITUTION'   OF  CLEISTf/ENES.  121 

retire  unharmed  from  the  country.  Those  Athenians  who  had 
taken  part  with  Isagoras  in  the  movement  were  all  put  to  death. 

Cleisthenes  and  his  friends  were  now  brought  back  from  exile, 
and  in  his  hands  was  placed  the  constitution  in  order  that  he  might 
mould  it  into  a  form  still  more  democratic  than  that  which  had 
been  given  it  by  Solon.  Thus  in  the  year  508  B.C.  Cleisthenes 
became  the  third  great  legislator  of  the  Athenians. 

The  Constitution  of  Cleisthenes  (508  b.c). —  In  place  of  the 
four  so-called  Ionian  tribes  ^  into  which  all  the  citizens  of  Athens 
up  to  this  time  had  been  divided,  Cleisthenes  formed  ten  new 
tribes,  in  which  were  enrolled  all  the  free  inhabitants  of  Attica, 
including,  it  would  seem,  resident  aliens  and  emancipated  slaves.^ 
The  change  amounted  to  what  we  should  call  "an  extension  of 
the  franchise."  The  ten  new  tribes,  which  were  practically  geo- 
graphical divisions  of  Attica,  were  each  made  up  of  a  number  of 
local  subdivisions,  called  demes,  or  townships,  into  which  Cleis- 
thenes, for  the  purposes  of  his  reforms,  had  divided  Attica. 
There  were  a  hundred  or  more  of  these.  In  the  interest  of 
democratic  equality,  each  member  of  a  deme  was  to  have  added 
to  his  individual  name  that  of  his  deme,  instead  of  his  father's  name. 

The  demes  constituting  any  given  tribe  were  not  allowed  to  be 
contiguous,  but  were  located  in  each  of  the  old  local  divisions,  the 
Plain,  the  Shore,  and  the  Hill  (p.  115).  The  object  of  this  was  to 
break  up  the  old  factions,  and  also  to  give  each  tribe  some  terri- 
tory in  or  near  Athens,  so  that  at  least  some  of  its  members  should 
be  within  easy  reach  of  the  meeting-place  of  the  Ecclesia.^ 

1  See  p.  112,  note. 

2  The  ancient  tribes  were  not  dissolved,  but  now  lost  all  political  significance, 
and  continued  to  exist  simply  as  religious  bodies.  The  four  property  classes  also 
remained  unchanged,  save  that  they  were  enlarged  by  the  admission  to  them  of 
the  new-made  citizens.  The  duties  and  privileges  of  these  classes  (eligibility  to 
the  archonship,  etc.)  remained  as  before.    See  p.  107 ;  also  p.  iii,  notes  i  and  2. 

3  The  meetings  of  the  Ecclesia  in  early  times  were  held  on  a  low  hill  to  the  west 
of  the  Acropolis,  supposed  to  be  identical  with  the  so-called  Pnyx  Hill  of  to-day. 
"  After  the  construction  of  the  Dionysiac  theatre  [this  spot]  was  abandoned  as  the 
regular  place  of  popular  assemblies,  and  was  used  only  for  special  meetings." 
See   monograph   by  John    M.   Crow,  entitled  "  The  Athenian  Pnyx,"  in  Papers 


122 


THE  HISTORY  OF  ATHENS. 


This  reorganization  of  the  tribes  and  the  local  units  of  the  Athe- 
nian state,  was  the  most  important  of  the  constitutional  reforms 
effected  by  Cleisthenes.  It  effected  such  a  radical  change  in  the 
interests  of  the  masses  that  he,  rather  than  Solon,  is  regarded  by 
many  as  the  real  founder  of  the  Athenian  democracy.  The  aristo- 
cratic exclusiveness  which  characterized  the  old  tribes  was  de- 
stroyed ;  the  factions  of  the  Plain,  the  Shore,  and  the  Hill,  which 
had  so  often  endangered  the  safety  of  the  state,  were  effectually 

broken  up ;  while 
the  roll  of  citizens 
was  greatly  length- 
ened, and  thereby 
new  strength  and 
vigor  were  imparted 
to  the  democracy. 
After  this  reform 
Athens  advanced 
rapidly  to  the  place 
of  leadership  among 
the  cities  of  Hellas. 
The  Council  of 
the  Four  Hundred 
(p.  112)  was  remodelled  by  Cleisthenes  in  accordance  with  his 
new  divisions  of  the  state.  Its  membership  was  raised  to  five 
hundred,  fifty  from  each  of  the  new  tribes.  Its  chief  duties  were 
to  prepare  recommendations  to  be  acted  on  by  the  popular  assem- 
bly, and  to  exercise  certain  judicial  and  administrative  functions.^ 

of  the  American  School  of  Classical  Studies,  vol.  iv.,  1885-1886.  On  the  Pnyx 
Hill  may  be  seen  a  platform  mounted  by  steps,  the  whole  cut  out  of  the  native 
rock  (see  Fig,  21),  This  rock-pulpit  is  believed  to  be  the  celebrated  Bevia  of 
the  Athenian  orators. 

1  The  presiding  officers  of  the  public  assembly  were  supplied  by  the  Senate. 
To  the  fifty  senators  of  each  tribe  was  assigned  by  lot  one  of  the  ten  nearly  equal 
periods,  called  Prytanes,  into  which  the  year  was  divided.  The  fifty  senators,  who 
thus  during  one-tenth  of  the  year  acted  as  a  sort  of  executive  committee,  were 
known  as  Prytanes  (collectively  as  the  Prytany),  and  were  kept  at  the  public  ex- 
pense at  the  Prytaneum  (p.  37).    The  Prytany  was  divided   into  four  groups  of 


Fig.  21.     THE     BEMA,     OR     ORATOR'S     STAND,     ON     THE 
PNYX   HILL   AT   ATHENS.     (From  a  photograph.) 


THE    CONSTITUTION  OF  CLEISTHENES.  123 

The  Areopagus  was  left  essentially  unchanged,  but  the  strength- 
ening of  the  democratic  organs  of  the  government  resulted  in  a 
lessening  of  its  power  and  influence. 

Certain  changes  were  made  in  the  organization  of  the  army.^ 
In  place  of  the  four  strategi  or  generals  who  commanded  the 
forces  of  the  four  old  tribes,  ten  generals  were  now  elected,  one 
by  each  of  the  ten  new  tribes.  Until  a  later  period,  however, 
these  tribal  commanders  were,  as  heretofore,  subordinate  to  the 
polemarch,  who  still  held  the  chief  command  of  the  forces  of  the 
state. 

But  of  all  the  innovations  or  institutions  of  Cleisthenes,  that 
known  as  ostracism  was  the  most  characteristic.  By  means  of 
this  process  any  person  who  had  excited  the  suspicions  or  dis- 
pleasure of  the  people  could,  without  trial,  be  banished  from 
Athens  for  a  period  of  ten  years.  Six  thousand  votes  ^  cast  against 
any  person  in  a  meeting  of  the  popular  assembly  was  a  decree  of 
banishment.  The  name  of  the  person  whose  banishment  was 
sought  was  written  on  a  shell  or  piece  of  pottery,  in  Greek  ostrakon 
(ocTTpaKov),  whence  the  term  "ostracism." 

The  design  of  this  institution  was  to  prevent  the  recurrence  of 
such  an  usurpation  as  that  of  the  Peisistratidae.  It  was  first  used 
to  get  rid  of  some  of  the  old  friends  of  the  ex-tyrant  Hippias, 
who  the  Athenians  had  reason  to  believe  were  plotting  for  his 
return.  Later  the  vote  came  to  be  employed,  as  a  rule,  simply 
to  settle  disputes  between  rival  leaders  of  political  parties,  and, 
when  thus  used,  was  designed  to  put  an  end  to  dangerous  con- 
tentions between  powerful  factions  in  the  state.  Thus  the  vote, 
viewed  in   one   way,  merely  expressed   political   preference,  the 

ten  members  each,  and  to  each  section  was  assigned  the  duty  of  presiding  for 
seven  days  at  all  assemblies  both  of  the  Boule  and  the  Ecclesia  convened  during 
this  period.  Each  day  the  Prytany  chose  one  of  their  number  chairman,  and  to 
him  was  entrusted  for  twenty-four  hours  the  custody  of  the  seal  of  the  state  and  the 
keys  of  the  Acropolis. 

1  Not,  however,  until  six  or  seven  years  after  the  formation  of  the  ten  tribes. 

2  Or  possibly  a  majority  of  the  votes  cast  in  an  assembly  of  not  less  than  six 
thousand  citizens.     The  authorities  are  not  clear. 


124  THE   HISTORY  OF  ATHENS. 

ostracized  person  being  simply  the  defeated  candidate  for  popular 
favor.     No  stigma  or  disgrace  attached  to  him. 

The  power  that  the  device  of  ostracism  lodged  in  the  hands  of 
the  people  was  not  always  wisely  used,  and  some  of  the  ablest  and 
most  patriotic  statesmen  of  Athens  were  sent  into  exile  through 
the  influence  of  some  demagogue,  who  for  the  moment  had  caught 
the  popular  ear.^ 

Such,  in  brief  outline,  was  the  new  Cleisthenean  constitution. 
"  By  conferring  large  benefits  upon  the  people,  and  by  opening  to 
them  new  and  attractive  spheres  of  activity,  [it]  inspired  them  with 
a  patriotism  hitherto  unknown.  A  great  tide  of  public  enthusiasm 
and  public  energy,  arising  at  this  point,  surged  onward  through  the 
Persian  wars,  carrying  the  Athenians  victoriously  through  these 
crises  in  the  history  of  their  country  and  the  world,  liberating  the 
Ionic  Greeks,  founding  a  great  maritime  empire,  gaining  in  height 
and  strength,  with  each  political  advance,  till  it  reached  its  cHmax 
in  the  marvellous  activity  of  the  Periclean  age."- 

Sparta  opposes  the  Athenian  Democracy. — The  oligarchical 
party  at  Athens  was,  as  was  natural,  bitterly  opposed  to  all  these 
democratic  innovations.  The  Spartans,  too,  viewed  with  distrust 
and  jealousy  this  rapid  growth  of  the  Athenian  democracy,  while 
their  king  Cleomenes  was  burning  to  avenge  himself  upon  the 
Athenian  populace  for  the  recent  humiliation  to  which  they  had 
subjected  him  (p.  120).  It  was  plain  that  the  Athenians  would  be 
forced  to  fight  for  their  new  constitution. 

Alarmed  at  the  preparations  which  they  learned  Cleomenes  was 
making  to  lead  a  Peloponnesian  army  into  Attica,  the  Athenians 

1  The  institution  was  short-lived.  It  was  resorted  to  for  the  last  time  during  the 
Peloponnesian  War  (418  B.C.  ).  The  people  then,  in  a  freak,  ostracized  a  man, 
Hyperbolus  by  name,  whom  all  admitted  to  be  the  meanest  man  in  Athens.  This, 
it  is  said,  was  regarded  as  such  a  degradation  of  the  institution,  as  well  as  such  an 
honor  to  the  mean  man,  that  never  thereafter  did  the  Athenians  degrade  a  good 
man  or  honor  a  bad  one  by  a  resort  to  the  measure.  It  is  probable,  however, 
that  the  institution  fell  into  disuse  about  this  time  for  the  reason  that  the  diminish- 
ing number  of  Athenian  citizens  rendered  it  impossible  to  secure  the  requisite  num- 
ber of  voters  in  the  assembly.     See  Botsford,  The  Athenian  Constitution,  p.  207, 

2  Botsford,  The  Athenian  Constitution,  p.  208. 


SPARTA    OPPOSES    THE   ATHENIAN  DEMOCRACY.      125 

sent  an  embassy  to  the  Persian  satrap  Artaphernes,  at  Sardis,  in 
Asia  Minor,  to  sue  for  an  alliance  with  the  Persian  king.  The 
satrap  offered  to  send  aid  on  condition  that  Athens  should  become 
the  vassal  of  his  master.  The  envoys,  taking  counsel  of  their 
fears,  assented,  on  behalf  of  Athens,  to  these  humiliating  terms  ; 
but  the  Athenians  at  home,  when  acquainted  with  what  their 
commissioners  had  done,  were  furious,  and  indignantly  refused  to 
ratify  the  engagement.  They  were  seeking  for  an  ally,  not  for  a 
master. 

The  only  ally  they  found  was  the  little  state  of  Plataea,  which 
shortly  before  this  had  broken  away  from  the  Boeotian  confed- 
eracy, and  sought  the  protection  of  Athens.  This  had  been 
granted,  and  the  little  Plataean  army  was  now  at  the  service  of 
their  patrons. 

The  Peloponnesian  army  was  soon  on  Attic  soil.  T^e  Spar- 
tans, realizing  the  seriousness  of  their  undertaking,  had  sent  into 
the  field  the  flower  of  their  troops,  and  both  their  kings,  Demara- 
tus  and  Cleomenes.  They  had  also  called  upon  all  their  allies  for 
large  contingents,  so  that  the  army  of  invasion  was  a  formidable 
one.  Besides,  Thebes,  and  Chalcis  in  Euboea,  had  entered  into 
aUiance  with  the  Peloponnesians,  and  were  preparing  to  invade 
Attica  from  the  north. 

The  Athenians  rallied  their  forces  and  moved  out  to  meet  the 
Peloponnesian  army;  but  dissensions  in  the  camp  of  the  invaders 
prevented  a  battle.  The  allies  of  the  Spartans  had  not  been 
informed  of  the  object  of  the  expedition,  and  upon  learning  that 
its  aim  was  to  set  up  a  tyranny  in  Athens,  refused  to  take  any 
hand  in  the  matter.  They  were  sustained  in  this  decision  by  the 
Spartan  king  Demaratus,  and  the  outcome  was  the  dispersal  of 
the  allies  without  the  striking  of  a  single  blow.  Cleomenes  was 
constrained,  in  disappointment  and  anger,  to  lead  his  army  back 
to  Sparta. 

After  the  withdrawal  from  Attica  of  the  Peloponnesian  forces, 
the  Athenians  chastised  the  Thebans  for  giving  aid  to  the  Spar- 
tans ;  and  then  crossing  the  channel  to  Euboea,  captured  Chalcis, 


126  THE   HISTORY  OF  ATHENS. 

took  away  from  the  Chalcidians  their  lands,  and  distributed  them 
by  lot  among  four  thousand  Attic  farmers  (506  B.C.). 

These  colonists  were  not  ordinary  emigrants ;  they  did  not 
cease  to  be  citizens  of  Athens.  In  a  word,  the  part  of  the  island 
thus  setded  became  simply  an  addition  to  Attic  territory.  This 
was  the  second  of  that  class  of  colonies  which  we  have  already 
described  under  the  name  cleruchies}  It  proved  to  be  of  vast 
service  to  Athens. 

Cleomenes  now  thought  to  secure  his  object  through  Hippias. 
Inviting  the  deposed  tyrant  over  from  Asia,  he  called  at  Sparta  a 
convention  of  all  her  Peloponnesian  allies,  and  tried  to  persuade 
them  to  aid  the  Spartans  in  restoring  Hippias  to  power  in  Athens. 
But  the  eloquent  portrayal  by  the  Corinthian  deputy  Sosicles,  of 
the  wrongs  Corinth  had  endured  at  the  hands  of  the  tyrant  Perian- 
der  (p.  92),  and  his  scathing  rebuke  of  Sparta's  inconsistency  in 
overthrowing  tyrannies  elsewhere  and  then  trying  to  set  one  up  in 
Athens,  caused  all  the  allies  to  refuse  to  lend  any  aid  to  the  pro- 
posed undertaking,  so  that  Cleomenes  was  forced  to  abandon  it. 

Hippias  now  withdrew  once  more  to  Asia  Minor,  and  we  soon 
find  him  at  the  court  of  Darius,  seeking  aid  of  the  Persians.  His 
solicitations,  in  connection  with  an  affront  which  the  Athenians 
just  now  offered  the  king  himself  by  aiding  his  revolted  subjects  in 
Ionia,  led  directly  up  to  the  memorable  struggle  known  as  the 
Graeco-Persian  Wars. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Life  of  Solon.  Botsford,  The  Athenian  Constitu- 
tion. Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  316-431.  Grote,  History  of 
Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  ii.  pp.  422-529;  ib.  vol.  iii.  pp.  324-398; 
(twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  iii.  pp.  48-162;  ib.  vol.  iv.  pp.  102-181.  Abbott, 
History  of  Greece,  vol.  i.  pp.  279-308,  398-429,  450-486.  The  accounts  of 
the  Athenian  constitution  in  Curtius,  Grote,  and  Abbott,  which  were  written 
before  the  recent  discovery  of  the  Aristotelian  treatise,  must  be  read  with 
caution  and  under  the  light  of  the  new  evidence.  Holm,  History  of  Greece, 
vol.  i.  pp.  376-432.  Kenyon's  Aristptle,  Constitution  of  Athens,  chs.  1-22. 
Cox,  Lives  of  Greek  Statesmen  :  "  Solon,"  "  Peisistratus  "  and  "  Kleisthenes." 

1  See  p.  77,  note ;  also  p.  109,  note. 


CAUSE    OF   THE  PERSIAN   WARS. 


127 


Fig.  22.     GREEK   WARRIORS    PREPARING    FOR    BATTLE 


Part   Second. 

THE    PERSIAN    WARS. 

(500-479   B.C.) 


CHAPTER   VIII. 


HELLAS   OVERSHADOWED   BY  THE   RISE  OF   PERSIA. 


Cause  of  the  Persian  Wars.  —  In  a  foregoing  chapter  on  Greek 
colonization  we  showed  how  the  expansive  energies  of  the  Greek 
race,  chiefly  during  the  eighth  and  seventh  centuries  B.C.,  covered 
the  islands  and  shores  of  the  Mediterranean  world  with  a  free, 
liberty-loving,  progressive,  and  ever-growing  population  of  Hel- 
lenic speech  and  culture.  The  first  half  of  the  sixth  century  had 
barely  passed  before  this  promising  expansive  movement  was  first 
checked  and  then  seriously  cramped  by  the  rise  of  a  great  des- 
potic Asiatic  power,  the  Persian  empire,  which,  pushing  outward 
from  its  central  seat  on  the  table-lands  of  Iran  to  the  ^gean  Sea, 
before  the  close  of  the  century  had  subjugated  the  Greek  cities  of 


128  HELLAS   OVERSHADOWED. 

Asia  Minor,  and  was  threatening  to  overwhelm  in  hke  manner 
those  of  European  Greece.  Here  must  be  sought  the  real  cause 
of  the  memorable  wars  between  Hellas  and  Persia. 

To  understand,  then,  the  character  and  import  of  the  contest 
which  we  are  approaching,  we  must  now  turn  from  our  study  of 
the  rising  cities  of  Greece  in  order  to  acquaint  ourselves  with  the 
nature  and  growth  of  this  colossal  empire  whose  portentous 
shadow  was  thus  darkening  the  bright  Hellenic  world,  and  whose 
steady  encroachments  upon  the  Greek  cities  threatened  to  leave 
the  Greeks  no  standing-room  on  the  earth. 

The  Beginnings  of  the  Medo-Persian  Power.  —  The  country 
that  we  know  as  Persia  was  in  very  early  times  entered  by  Aryan 
tribes,  kinsmen  of  the  Hellenes.  They  drove  out  or  absorbed  a 
people  of  non-Aryan  race  whom  they  found  in  possession  of  the 
land.  The  tribes  that  settled  in  the  south,  in  the  mountainous  dis- 
tricts along  the  Persian  Gulf,  became  known  as  the  Persians  ;  while 
those  that  took  possession  of  the  regions  of  the  northwest  were 
called  Medes. 

The  Medes,  through  intermixture  with  the  aboriginal  inhabitants 
of  the  country,  became  somewhat  different  from  the  Persians ;  but 
notwithstanding  this  the  names  of  the  two  peoples  were  always 
very  closely  associated,  as  in  the  familiar  legend,  "  The  law  of  the 
Medes  and  Persians,  which  altereth  not." 

The  Medes  were  at  first  the  leading  people.  Cyaxares  (625- 
585  B.C.)  was  their  first  prominent  leader  and  king.  Aided  by 
the  Babylonians,  he  destroyed  the  great  capital  Nineveh,  and  thus 
brought  to  an  end  the  empire  of  the  Assyrian  kings,  who  for  centu- 
ries had  been  the  hated  oppressors  of  the  peoples  of  Western  Asia. 
The  destruction  of  the  Assyrian  power  resulted  in  the  speedy  ex- 
tension of  the  new  Median  empire  to  the  river  Halys  in  Asia  Minor, 
where  it  touched  upon  the  possessions  of  the  kings  of  Lydia. 

About  the  middle  of  the  sixth  century  b.c.  the  Persians,  who 
were  being  held  in  at  least  partial  subjection  to  the  Median 
crown,  revolted,  overthrew  the  Median  king,  and  thereafter  held 
the  place  of  leadership  in  the  dual  state. 


DESTRUCTION  OF   THE  LYDIAJST  MONARCHY.         129 

The  leader  of  the  revolt  agamst  the  Medes  was  Cyrus  (558- 
529  B.C.),  known  in  history  as  Cyrus  the  Great,  the  tributary  king 
of -the  Persians.  Through  his  energy  and  soldierly  genius,  he  soon 
had  built  up  an  empire  more  extended  than  any  over  which  the 
sceptre  had  yet  been  swayed  by  Oriental  monarch,  or  indeed,  so 
far  as  we  know,  by  any  ruler  before  his  time.  It  stretched  from 
the  western  frontier  of  India  to  the  ^gean,  and  thus  embraced 
not  only  all  the  territories  of  the  earlier  Median  empire,  but  also 
those  of  the  kingdoms  of  Lydia  and  Babylonia.  Of  the  various 
conquests  of  Cyrus  it  concerns  us  to  notice  here  only  that  of  the 
Lydian  kingdom,  the  single  monarchy  preceding  the  Persian  whose 
history  is  connected  in  any  vital  way  with  that  of  Hellas. 

Destruction  by  Cyrus  of  the  Lydian  Monarchy  (about 
546  B.C.).  —  Lydia  was  a  country  in  the  western  part  of  Asia  Minor. 
It  was  a  land  highly  favored  by  nature.  It  embraced  two  rich 
river  valleys,  —  the  plains  of  the  Hermus  and  the  Cayster,  —  which 
from  the  mountains  inland  sloped  gently  to  the  island-dotted 
^gean.  The  Pactolus,  and  other  tributaries  of  the  streams  we 
have  named,  rolled  down  "golden  sands,"  while  the  mountains 
were  rich  in  the  precious  metals.  The  coast  region  did  not  at 
first  belong  to  Lydia ;  it  was  held  by  the  Greeks,  who,  as  we  have 
seen,  had  fringed  it  with  cities.  The  capital  of  the  country  was 
Sardis,  whose  citadel  was  set  on  a  lofty  and  precipitous  rock.^ 

The  Lydian  throne  was  at  this  time  held  by  Croesus  (about 
560-546  B.C.),  the  last  and  most  renowned  of  his  race.  Under 
him  the  Lydian  monarchy  had  attained  its  greatest  extension. 
We  need  to  notice  now  only  his  relations  to  the  Greek  cities  of 
the  coast.  The  attacks  which  his  predecessors  had  made  upon 
these  Hellenic  communities  had  been  for  the  most  part  success- 
fully repelled  ;  but  he  succeeded  in  bringing  them  all  in  subjection 
to  his  authority. 

This  subjection  to  a  semi-barbaric  power  of  the  flourishing  Hel- 

1  The  Lydians  were  a  mixed  people,  formed,  it  is  thought,  by  the  mingUng,  in 
prehistoric  times,  of  Aryan  tribes  that  crossed  the  ^Egean  from  Europe,  with  the 
original  non-Aryan  population  of  the  country. 


130  HELLAS   OVERSLiADOWED. 

lenic  cities  of  Asia  was  the  first  great  disaster  that  had  befallen 
Hellas.  The  disaster,  however,  was  tempered  by  the  character  of 
Croesus,  who  was  an  enlightened  and  liberal  ruler,  and  was  kindly 
disposed  towards  the  Greeks.  He  dealt  generously  with  the 
subject  cities,  leaving  to  them  their  government  and  institutions, 
and  exacting  only  a  moderate  tribute. 

Now  the  fall  of  Media,  which  had  been  a  friendly  and  alHed 
power,  and  the  extension  thereby  of  the  domains  of  the  conqueror 
Cyrus  to  the  eastern  frontiers  of  Lydia,  naturally  filled  Croesus 
with  alarm.  He  at  once  formed  an  alliance  with  Nabonadius, 
king  of  Babylon,  and  Amasis,  king  of  Egypt,  both  of  whom,  like 
Croesus,  were  filled  with  apprehensions  respecting  the  safety  of 
their  own  kingdoms.  Furthermore,  in  obedience  to  certain  ora- 
cles which  bade  him  seek  the  help  of  the  most  powerful  of  the 
Greek  states,  Croesus  formed  an  alhance  with  Sparta,  which  at  this 
time  was  regarded  as  the  strongest  in  war  of  all  the  Grecian  cities. 
These  alliances  show  with  what  feelings  of  common  alarm  the 
growth  of  the  new  empire  of  Cyrus  had  filled  all  these  lands 
whose  independence  was  threatened  by  his  ambition  and  his  rest- 
less energy. 

Croesus  was  minded  to  anticipate  the  expected  attack  of  Cyrus 
by  first  taking  the  field  himself;  but  before  committing  himself 
to  so  important  a  step,  he  resolved  to  seek  counsel  of  the  gods. 
Accordingly  he  sent  messengers  to  various  oracles  to  make  inquiry 
as  to  what  would  be  the  issue  of  his  proposed  war  against  Cyrus.  It 
was  upon  the  answer  of  the  Delphian  oracle,  which  Croesus  had 
enriched  with  gifts  of  fabulous  value,  that  he  especially  relied.  The 
reply  which  this  oracle  returned  to  his  inquiry  was  that,  if  he 
attacked  Cyrus,  "  he  would  destroy  a  great  empire."  Interpret- 
ing this  favorably,  he  sent  again  to  inquire  "  whether  his  kingdom 
would  be  of  long  duration,"  and  received  in  substance  the  follow- 
ing answer  :  "  When  a  mule  ^  shall  become  king  of  the  Medes,  then 
hasten  away  and  tarry  not."     Deeming  the  accession  of  a  mule 

1  The  allusion  is  to  the  (traditional)  mixed  Persian  and  Median  descent  of 
Cyrus. 


DESTRUCTION  OF   THE  LVD  IAN  MONARCHY. 


131 


^o<tO,>^*^^/^l>^rt^/^ 


to  the  Persian  throne  altogether  impossible,  Croesus  inferred  the 
oracle  to  mean  that  his  empire  should  last  forever.^ 

Thus  encouraged  in  his  purpose,  Croesus,  without  waiting  for 
his  allies  to  join  him,  imprudently  crossed  the  river  Halys  and 
threw  down  the  gage  of  battle  to  Cyrus.  But  he  had  miscalculated 
the  strength  and  alertness  of  his  enemy.  Cyrus  met  in  Cappa- 
docia  the  Lydian  army  of  invasion.  After  a  severe  battle  here,  in 
which  neither  side  could 
claim  a  victory,  Croesus 
recrossed  the  Halys  into 
his  own  dominions,  whither 
he  was  followed  by  Cyrus. 
Taken  at  a  disadvantage  in 
front  of  Sardis,  Croesus  was 
defeated  in  battle,  and 
driven  within  the  walls  of 
his  capital,  which  after  a 
short  siege  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Persians. 

There  was  a  tradition  cur- 
rent among  the  later  Greeks 
which  told  how  Cyrus  had 
caused  to  be  erected  a  pyre  on  which  to  burn  Croesus,  but 
at  the  last  moment  was  struck  by  hearing  the  unfortunate 
monarch  repeatedly  call  out  the  name  of  Solon.  Seeking  the 
meaning  of  this,  he  was  told  of  the  visit  paid  Croesus  in  his 
prosperous  days  by  the  Athenian  lawgiver  Solon,  and  of  the 
conversation  that  took  place  between  the  king  and  the  sage 
(p.  114).  Cyrus,  it  is  said,  was  so  deeply  impressed  by  this  illus- 
tration of  the  fickleness  of  fortune,  that  he  relented  and  ordered 
Croesus  to  be  taken  from  the  pile.  But  the  rising  flames  rendered 
his  rescue  by  human  means  impossible.  Then  Croesus  called 
in  prayer  upon  Apollo,  wh'ose  shrines  he  had  so  honored  and 
enriched.     Straightway  clouds  overspread  the  sky   and  a   heavy 

1  Herod,  i.  53-56. 


Fig.  23.     CRCZSUS   ON    THE    PYRE. 


132  HELLAS   OVERSHADOWED. 

downpour  of  rain  speedily  quenched  the  fire.  ^  Though  this  legend 
is  probably  a  pure  fiction,  still  it  is  an  historical  fact  that  Cyrus 
dealt  generously  with  his  unfortunate  prisoner,  and  that  Croesus  for 
a  long  time  afterwards  was  a  trusted  counsellor  of  the  Persian  court. 

The  fall  of  the  Lydian  kingdom  has  a  special  significance  for 
Grecian  history,  from  the  fact  that  power  in  Asia  Minor  now  passed 
from  the  hands  of  the  tolerant,  Greek-loving  Lydian  kings  into  the 
hands  of  intolerant,  Greek-hating  Persians.  The  rulers  of  Lydia 
appreciated  Greek  civilization,  and  were  friends  of  the  Greek  gods 
and  patrons  of  the  Greek  shrines.  The  Persian  kings,  however, 
speaking  generally,  ^  were  ignorant  and  disdainful  of  Greek  cul- 
ture, and  as  monotheists  were  naturally  hostile  to  Greek  worship. 
The  Greeks  had  now  good  reason,  as  says  Curtius,  to  tremble  for 
city,  temple,  and  altar. 

Conquest  by  the  Persians  of  the  Asiatic  Greek  Cities  (546- 
544  B.C.).  —  The  Greek  cities  of  the  Asian  coast  which  had 
formed  part  of  the  Lydian  kingdom  soon  realized  of  what  serious 
concern  to  them  was  the  revolution  that  had  transferred  authority 
in  Asia  Minor  from  Lydian  to  Persian  hands.  Cyrus  had  asked 
them  to  join  him  in  his  war  against  Croesus,  but  all  except  Miletus, 
satisfied  with  the  easy  conditions  which  that  king  had  imposed 
upon  them,  refused  to  listen  to  any  proposal  of  the  kind.  Upon 
the  downfall  of  Croesus,  these  cities  hastened  to  offer  submission 
to  the  conqueror,  ^asking  that  he  would  allow  them  to  retain  all  the 
privileges  which  they  had  enjoyed  under  the  Lydian  monarchy. 
Cyrus  refused  their  petition.  Thereupon  they  closed  their  gates 
against  him,  and  resolved  to  fight  for  their  liberties.  In  a  short 
time,  however,  all  were  reduced  to  submission.  Many  of  the 
lonians,  rather  than  live  in  Ionia  as  slaves,  abandoned  their  old 
homes  and  sought  new  ones  among  the  colonies  of  Western  Hellas, 
and  on  the  Thracian  shore.^     All  the  remaining  inhabitants  of  the 

1  Herod,  i.  86,  87. 

2  Cyrus,  as  has  recently  been  learned  from  the  cuneiform  inscriptions,  was  not 
zealous  in  the  prorriotion  of  the  worship  of  Ahura  Mazda. 

8  The  important  Thracian  colony  of  Abdera  was  founded  by  these  exiles. 


CONQUEST   OF  EGYPT  AND    OTHER   LANDS.  133 

Asian  Greek  cities,  together  with  those  of  the  large  islands  of 
Chios  and  Lesbos,  became  subjects  of  the  Persian  king.  The  cities 
retained  the  management  of  their  own  affairs,  under  such  govern- 
ments as  they  chanced  to  have,  but  were  forced  to  pay  tribute,  and 
to  furnish  contingents  to  the  army  of  their  master.  Thus  at  one 
blow  was  the  whole  of  the  eastern  shore  of  the  ^4igean,  the  cradle 
and  home  of  the  earliest  development  in  Greek  poetry,  philosophy, 
music,  and  art,  lost  to  the  Hellenic  world. 


SSr^^ 


Fig.  24.     TOMB   OF  CYRUS   THE   GREAT   AT   PASARGAD/E. 
THE   OLD    PERSIAN    CAPITAL.     (Present  condition.) 

Conquest  of  Egypt  and  other  Lands  by  Cambyses  (529- 
522  B.C.).  —  Cyrus  transmitted  his  vast  empire  to  his  son  Cam- 
byses. Possessing  far  less  ability  than  his  father  for  the  execution 
of  great  projects,  Cambyses  nevertheless  conceived  even  vaster 
schemes  of  conquest  and  dominion.  Not  content  with  Asia  as  a 
field  for  his  ambition,  he  resolved  to  add  the  country  of  Africa  to 
his  wide  inheritance. 

Cambyses  first  brought  the  cities  of  Phoenicia  under  his  au- 
thority and  thus  obtained  control  of  their  large  naval  resources. 
Straightway  their  galleys  were  ordered  to  be  put  in  readiness  to 
aid  in  the  proposed  subjection  of  Egypt.     To  the  Phoenician  fleet 


134  HELLAS   OVERSHADOWED. 

when  collected  was  added  a  large  contingent  of  ships  furnished  by 
the  Asian  Greeks,  who  were  thus  compelled  to  assist  their  master 
in  reducing  to  slavery  the  rest  of  the  world.  Cyprus,  a  depend- 
ency of  Egypt,  was  now  conquered,  and  the  naval  strength  of 
the  Cypriots  added  to  the  already  formidable  armament  of  the 
Persian  king. 

Supported  by  his  fleet,  Cambyses  marched  his  army  from  Syria 
into  Egypt,  captured  Memphis,  ascended  the  Nile  to  Thebes,  and 
brought  all  the  country  under  his  control.  The  conquest  of  Egypt 
drew  after  it  the  subjection  to  the  Persian  power  of  the  Greek 
colonies  of  Gyrene  and  Barca  on  the  African  coast.  Cambyses 
had  planned  an  expedition  against  Carthage,  but  was  forced  to 
abandon  the  undertaking  on  account  of  tlie  refusal  of  his  Phoeni- 
cian sailors  to  help  enslave  their  kinsmen. 

This  extension  of  the  authority  of  the  Persian  king  over  Phoe- 
nicia, Cyprus,  Egypt,  and  the  Greek  colonies  of  the  African  shore, 
was  a  second  severe  blow  to  Greek  interests  and  Greek  inde- 
pendence. The  naval  armaments  of  all  these  maritime  coun- 
tries were  now  subject  to  the  orders  of  the  Persian  despot,  and 
were  ready  to  be  turned  against  those  of  the  Greeks  who  still 
were  free. 

Religious  Revolution  in  Persia  :  Magianism  and  Zoroastrian- 
ism.  —  While  Cambyses  was  in  Egypt,  a  revolt  against  him  broke 
out  at  home.  A  Magian  impostor,  Gomates  by  name,  or  Smerdis 
as  called  by  the  Greeks,  taking  advantage  of  the  hatred  enter- 
tained by  the  people  towards  Cambyses,  had  usurped  the  throne. 
To  understand  this  revolution,  we  must  bear  in  mind  that  there 
were  at  this  time  two  opposed  religions  in  Persia  :  Zoroastrianism, 
which  taught  the  simple  worship  of  one  God  under  the  name  of 
Ormuzd,  or  Ahura  Mazda  ;  and  Magianism,  a  less  pure  faith,  whose 
professors  were  fire-worshippers.  The  former  was  the  religion  of 
the  Persians  ;  the  latter  that  of  the  Medes.  The  usurpation  which 
placed  Smerdis  on  the  throne  had  been  planned  by  the  Magi,  or 
fire-priests,  to  which  order  Smerdis  himself  belonged. 

Cambyses  had  set  out  on  his  return  to  Persia  when  news  of  the 


REFORM  BY  DARIUS   OF   THE    GOVERNMENT.         135 

revolt  was  brought  to  him.  Disheartened  by  the  intelHgence,  he 
in  despair  took  his  own  Hfe.  But  the  usurper  Smerdis  enjoyed  his 
royal  honors  only  for  a  few  months.  He  was  assassinated  by  a 
band  of  Persian  nobles,  led  by  a  prince  named  Darius,  son  of 
Hystaspes,  who  had  sprung  from  another  branch  of  the  royal  house 
of  Persia  than  that  to  which  Cyrus  and  Cambyses  belonged. 
Darius  now  mounted  the  throne.  His  first  act  was  to  punish  by  a 
general  massacre  the  Magian  priests  for  the  part  they  had  taken 
in  the  usurpation  by  Smerdis.  The  pure  Zoroastrian  worship  was 
reinstated ;  and  the  temples  which  had  been  destroyed  by  the 
Magians,  or  fire-worshippers,  were  restored.  All  the  inscriptions 
of  Darius  evince  great  zeal  for  the  restored  religion,  and  breathe 
a  spirit  of  pious  dependence  upon  Ormuzd. 

Reform  by  Darius  of  the  Persian  System  of  Government. — 
For  several  years  Darius  was  busy  suppressing  revolts  in  almost 
every  province  of  his  wide  dominions.  With  quiet  and  submis- 
sion finally  secured  throughout  the  empire,  he  gave  himself  for  a 
time  to  the  arts  of  peace.  He  built  a  palace  at  Susa,  and  erected 
magnificent  structures  at  Persepohs ;  established  post-roads  cen- 
tring in  Susa ;  and  remodelled  the  government,  making  such  wise 
and  lasting  changes  that  he  has  been  called  "  the  second  founder 
of  the  Persian  empire."  Previous  to  the  reforms  of  Darius,  the 
Persian  government  was  like  that  of  all  the  great  Oriental  mon- 
archies that  had  preceded  it ;  that  is,  it  consisted  of  a  great  num- 
ber of  subject  states,  which  were  allowed  to  retain  their  own  kings 
and  manage  their  own  affairs,  on  condition  of  their  paying  tribute 
and  homage,  and  furnishing  contingents,  in  time  of  war,  to  the 
army  of  the  Great  King. 

The  system  of  government  which  Darius  I.  organized  —  and 
which  was  reproduced,  if  not  imitated,  by  the  Romans  —  is  known 
as  the  satrapal,  a  form  represented  to-day  by  the  government  of 
the  Turkish  Sultans.  The  entire  kingdom  was  divided  into  twenty 
or  more  provinces,  over  each  of  which  was  placed  a  governor, 
called  a  satrap,  appointed  by  the  king.  These  officials  held  their 
position  at  the  pleasure  of  the  sovereign,  and  were  thus  rendered 


136  HELLAS   OVERSHADOWED. 

his  subservient  creatures.  Each  province  contributed  to  the  in- 
come of  the  king  a  stated  revenue. 

There  were  provisions  in  the  system  by  which  the  king  might 
be  apprised  of  the  disloyalty  of  his  satraps.  Thus  the  whole 
dominion  was  firmly  cemented  together,  and  the  facility  with 
which  the  semi-sovereign  states  that  constituted  the  different 
elements  of  the  empire  under  the  old  system  could  plan  and 
execute  revolt,  was  removed. 

Conquests  in  India.  —  With  the  empire  he  had  inherited  thus 
reorganized,  Darius  conceived  and  entered  upon  the  execution  of 
vast  designs  of  further  conquests,  the  far-reaching  effects  of  which 
were  destined  to  live  long  after  he  had  passed  away.  Inhospitable 
steppes  on  the  north  and  burning  deserts  on  the  south  seemed  the 
barriers  which  nature  herself  had  set  as  the  limits  of  dominion  in 
these  directions.  But  on  the  eastern  flank  of  the  kingdom  the 
rich  and  crowded  plains  of  India  invited  the  conqueror  with 
promises  of  endless  spoils  and  revenues ;  while  on  the  west  a  new 
continent,  full  of  mysteries,  presented  virgin  fields  never  yet 
traversed  by  the  army  of  an  Eastern  potentate. 

Darius  determined  to  extend  the  frontiers  of  his  empire  in  both 
these  directions.  He  first  dispatched,  according  to  credible 
accounts,  two  naval  expeditions  of  observation  —  one  to  seek 
information  respecting  the  Indus  country,  and  the  other  to  make 
such  investigations  of  the  western  seas  and  Grecian  states  as  might 
be  needful  to  his  plans. 

At  one  blow  the  region  of  Northwestern  India  known  as  the 
Punjab,  was  brought  under  Persian  authority ;  and  thus  with  a 
single  effort  were  the  eastern  limits  of  the  empire  pushed  out  so 
as  to  include  one  of  the  richest  countries  of  x\sia  —  one  which 
henceforth  returned  to  the  Great  King  an  annual  revenue  vastly 
larger  than  that  of  any  other  province  hitherto  acquired,  not  even 
excepting  the  rich  district  of  Babylonia. 

Destruction  of  the  Sea-power  of  Polycrates  in  the  iEgean.  — 
But  it  was  the  extension  of  the  Persian  authority  in  the  West  that 
most  intimately  concerned  the  Greek  world.     The  year  preceding 


THE   SCYTHIAN  EXPEDITION.  137 

the  accession  of  Darius  to  the  Persian  throne  had  witnessed  the 
fall  of  Polycrates  (p.  96),  and  the  virtual  destruction  of  his  mari- 
time empire  in  the  ^gean ;  for  though  the  tyranny  established  by 
him  lasted  on  after  his  death,  his  successor,  Meandrius,  was  unable 
to  maintain  the  old  authority,  and  early  in  the  reign  of  Darius  the 
island  of  Samos,  terribly  ravaged  by  a  Persian  force,  came  in 
vassalage  to  the  Persian  king. 

The  empire  of  Polycrates  was  scarcely  more,  it  is  true,  than 
a  piratical  sea-power ;  yet  it  was  a  Greek  state,  and  might  have 
proved,  in  the  critical  time  fast  approaching,  an  effectual  barrier 
against  the  barbarian  wave  of  conquest  which  now  threatened  to 
overwhelm  even  the  cities  of  European  Greece. 

The  Scythian  Expedition  of  Darius :  Conquests  in  Europe 
(513?  B.C.).  —  The  growing  anxiety  of  the  Greeks  in  the  home 
land  was  intensified  by  the  passage  of  the  Bosporus,  about  the  year 
513  B.C.,  by  an  immense  Persian  army  led  by  Darius  in  person, 
and  aimed  at  the  Scythians,  old  foes  of  the  Asian  peoples,  inhabit- 
ing the  bleak  steppes  which  comprise  South  Russia  of  to-day. 

After  having  crossed  the  Bosporus  by  means  of  a  bridge  of 
boats,  constructed  by  a  Samian  architect,  Darius  dispatched  his 
fleet,  consisting  of  six  hundred  ships,  drawn  chiefly  from  the 
Greek  cities  of  Ionia,  ^Eolis,  and  the  Hellespontine  regions,  to 
the  Euxine,  with  orders  to  construct  a  pontoon  bridge  over  the 
lower  course  of  the  Danube,  and  there  to  await  the  arrival  of  the 
land  forces. 

Meanwhile  Darius  was  leading  his  army  through  Thrace,  re- 
ceiving the  submission  of  many  Greek  cities  of  the  coast,  and 
of  the  barbarian  tribes  inland.  Reaching  the  Danube,  and  find- 
ing the  bridge  of  boats  already  completed,  he  marched  his  army 
across  the  river,  and,  leaving  the  lonians  to  watch  the  structure, 
pushed  on  into  the  Scythian  plains.  After  a  few  weeks  of  weari- 
some pursuit  of  an  ever-vanishing  enemy,  Darius  resolved  to 
retreat  from  the  country  by  the  way  he  had  come. 

As  soon  as  the  Scythians  became  aware  that  the  army  of  Darius 
was  in  retreat,  their  light  cavalry  set  out  in  pursuit,  aiming  straight 


138  HELLAS    OVERSHADOWED. 

for  the  Danube  at  the  spot  where  it  had  been  bridged.  Arriving 
here  before  the  Persians,  the  Scythians  endeavored  to  persuade  the 
lonians  whom  Darius  had  left  in  charge  of  the  bridge,  to  break  it 
down,  and  thereby  free  themselves  from  Persian  servitude  ;  for  the 
Scythians  promised,  if  the  lonians  would  do  this,  to  see  to  it  that 
Darius  should  be  treated  in  such  a  manner  that  "  he  would  never 
again  make  war  upon  any  one." 

A  council  of  the  Ionian  generals  was  called  to  consider  the  situ- 
ation. Miltiades,  an  Athenian  general  who  at  this  time  ruled  as 
king  in  the  Thracian  Chersonese,  urged  that  they  follow  the  advice 
of  the  Scythians,  and  destroy  the  bridge,  thereby  ensuring  at  once 
the  independence  of  Greece,  and  freeing  the  Asian  Greeks  from 
servitude  to  Persia.  But  this  suggestion  was  opposed  by  Histiaeus, 
the  tyrant  of  Miletus,  who  argued  that  they,  as  holders  of  the  gov- 
ernments in  the  various  cities,  would  gain  nothing  but  rather  lose 
everything  by  such  a  course,  inasmuch  as  the  Persian  king  was 
their  good  friend  and  supporter.  The  counsel  of  Histiaeus  was 
adopted,  and  Darius  and  his  army  were  thus  saved  from  destruc- 
tion at  the  hands  of  the  Scythians.^ 

Darius  requited  in  rather  a  dubious  way  this  great  service  ren- 
dered him  by  Histiaeus.  Some  subsequent  circumstances  having 
awakened  the  suspicions  of  the  king  in  regard  to  the  trustworthi- 
ness of  the  tyrant,  he  insisted  upon  his  going  with  him  to  Susa,  on 
the  pretext  that  he  wished  to  have  so  valued  a  friend  always  near 
his  person.  So  from  being  an  important  personage  in  Ionia,  His- 
tiaeus became  virtually  a  prisoner  at  the  Persian  court. 

Results  of  the  Scythian  Campaign.  —  After  recrossing  the 
Danube,  Darius  retreated  through  Thrace,  and  by  means  of  his 
fleet  passed  over  into  Asia,  leaving  behind  in  Europe,  however, 
eighty  thousand  of  his  troops  under  the  command  of  his  trusted 
general  Megabazus.  This  commander  completed  the  reduction  of 
the  barbarian  tribes  and  Greek  cities  of  Thrace,  and  even  secured 
the  submission  to  Darius  of  the  king  of  Macedonia. 

A  little  later  another  Persian  general,  Otanes  by  name,  recon- 

1  Herod,  iv.  137, 


THE  RISE    OF   THE   PERSIAN  POWER.  139 

quered  Byzantium,  Chalcedon,  and  other  Greek  cities  in  the 
Hellespontine  region  which  had  risen  in  revolt  while  Darius  was 
away  on  his  Scythian  campaign,  and  also  subjugated  the  islands  of 
Lemnos  and  Imbros  in  the  ^gean. 

The  expedition  of  Darius  thus  resulted  in  the  addition  of  both 
Thrace  and  Macedonia,  together  with  important  islands  in  the 
Northern  ^gean,  to  the  Persian  empire,  and  in  the  advance  of  its 
frontiers  to  the  passes  of  the  mountains  which  guard  Greece  on 
the  north.  The  greater  part  of  the  shores  of  the  yEgean  was  now 
in  the  possession  of  the  Great  King.  That  sea  which  had  so  long 
been  the  special  arena  of  Greek  activity  and  Greek  achievement, 
had  become  essentially  a  Persian  lake.  Moreover,  through  the 
loss  of  the  Hellespontine  regions,  the  Greeks  were  practically  cut 
off  from  the  Euxine,  which  had  come  to  be  such  an  important 
part  of  the  Hellenic  world. 

The  Rise  of  the  Persian  Power  in  the  East  synchronizes  with 
the  E-ise  of  the  Power  of  Carthage  in  the  West.  —  At  the  same 
time  that  the  Greeks  of  the  Eastern  Mediterranean  were  thus  fall- 
ing under  the  yoke  of  the  Persians,  and  the  liberty  of  the  cities  in 
the  home  land  was  being  threatened  with  extinction,  the  Greeks  in 
Sicily  were  being  hard  pressed  by  another  barbarian  people,  the 
Phoenicians.  The  power  of  Carthage  was  rising,  and  the  Greek 
cities  of  Sicily  were  just  now  engaging  in  a  doubtful  contest  with 
her  for  the  possession  of  the  island.  Thus  all  round  the  horizon, 
threatening  clouds  were  darkening  the  once  bright  prospects  of  the 
Hellenic  world. 

It  was,  indeed,  a  critical  moment  in  the  history  of  the  Greek  race. 
As  Ranke  says,  "  It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  energetic  Greek 
world  was  in  danger  of  being  crushed  in  the  course  of  its  vigorous 
development." 

References. — Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  book"^  i.-iv.  This  portion  of 
Herodotus'  history  is  devoted  in  the  main  to  an  account  of  the  lands  of  the 
East  which  came  to  form  a  part  of  the  empire  of  the  Persian  kings,  and  is  in 
the  nature  of  a  prelude  to  the  story  which  Herodotus  set  out  to  tell  of  the 
great  struggle  between  Persia  and  Hellas,     In  reading  these  books  the  student 


140  HELLAS   OVERSHADOWED. 

must  bear  in  mind  that  they  have  a  very  dififerent  historical  value  from  that 
possessed  by  those  portions  of  the  history  which  deal  primarily  with  Greek 
affairs.  "  The  net  result  of  Oriental  research,"  says  Professor  Sayce  (Preface 
to  Ancient  Empires  of  the  East,  pp.  xi.,  xii.),  "  in  its  bearing  upon  Herodotus 
is  to  show  that  the  greater  part  of  what  he  professes  to  tell  us  of  the  history  of 
Egypt,  Babylonia,  and  Persia,  is  really  a  collection  of  *  marchen,'  or  popular 
stories,  current  among  the  Greek  loungers  and  half-caste  dragomen  on  the 
skirts  of  the  Persian  empire.  .  .  .  After  all,  ...  it  may  be  questioned 
whether  they  are  not  of  higher  value  for  the  history  of  the  human  mind  than 
the  most  accurate  descriptions  of  kings  and  generals,  of  wars  and  treaties  and 
revolutions."  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  II2-193.  Grote,  History 
of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iii.  pp.  399-491;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol. 
iv.  pp.  182-280.  Rawlinson,  The  Five  Great  Monarchies  of  the  Ancient 
Eastern  World. 


ARISTAGORAS  INCITES   THE  lONIANS   TO  REVOLT.     141 


CHAPTER   IX. 

THE   REVOLT   OF  THE   lONIANS. 

(500-493  B.C.) 

Aristagoras  incites  the  lonians  to  Revolt  (500  b.c). — The 
Greek  cities  reduced  to  servitude  by  Persia  could  neither  long  nor 
quietly  endure  the  loss  of  their  independence.  In  the  year  500 
B.C.  Ionia  became  the  centre  of  a  wide-spread  rebellion  against 
the  Great  King. 

The  instigator  of  the  revolt  was  Aristagoras,  the  tyrant  of  Mile- 
tus and  the  son-in-law  of  Histiieus  (p.  138).  He  was  an  unprin- 
cipled and  ambitious  man,  willing  to  join  hands  with  either  the 
Persians  or  the  Greeks  if  only  he  could  advance  his  own  interests. 
He  had  fallen  into  disfavor  with  Artaphernes,  the  satrap  of  Sardis, 
and  was  filled  with  apprehension  lest  he  should  be  deprived  of  his 
government.  He  determined  to  anticipate  the  expected  action  of 
the  satrap,  by  raising  a  rebellion  of  all  the  Greek  cities  against  the 
Persian  power.  This  was  an  easy  thing  to  do  on  account  of  the  im- 
patience with  which  the  double  yoke  of  the  tyrants  and  the  Persians 
was  borne.  His  mind  was  fixed  in  its  resolve  by  a  letter  just  at 
this  moment  received  from  his  father-in-law  Histiaeus,  who  was 
still  held  in  honorable  detention  at  Susa.  Herodotus  tells  how 
Histiaeus,  in  order  to  secure  the  secrecy  of  his  message,  had 
recourse  to  the  following  device  :-  taking  a  trusty  slave,  he  shaved 
the  hair  from  his  head,  pricked  the  letters  upon  the  skin,  and, 
after  the  hair  had  grown  again,  sent  the  man  to  Aristagoras,  bid- 
ding him  upon  his  "arrival  at  Miletus  to  tell  Aristagoras  to  shave 
his  head  and  look  thereon.     The  message  that  Aristagoras  read 


142  THE   REVOLT   OF   THE  lONIANS. 

was  short.  It  was  this  :  "  Set  revolt  on  foot  in  Ionia."  ^  Histiaeus 
was  homesick,  and  hoped  that  if  trouble  should  break  out  in 
Ionia,  Darius  would  be  constrained  to  send  him  down  to  smooth 
over  matters. 

The  exhortation  of  his  father-in-law  fell  in  exactly  with  the  half- 
matured  plans  of  Aristagoras.  He  resolved  to  put  them  at  once 
into  execution.  Calling  a  council  of  his  friends,  he  revealed  all  to 
them.  Most  encouraged  him  in  his  purpose,  and  the  revolt  was 
determined  upon.  Aristagoras  gained  the  support  of  the  Mile- 
sians by  resigning  his  tyranny,  and  estabhshing  a  democratic  gov- 
ernment for  their  city.  Through  his  aid  the  tyrants  in  the  other 
cities  of  Ionia  and  ^olis  were  driven  out,  and  the  government 
everywhere  was  taken  into  the  hands  of  the  people.  Many  of 
the  exiled  despots  went  over  to  the  Persians,  and  later  were  found 
in  the  Persian  army  fighting  against  their  country. 

Aristagoras  seeks  Aid  at  Sparta  and  Athens.  —  With  the 
revolt  well  on  foot  in  Ionia,  Aristagoras  set  out  for  Greece  to 
secure  aid.  He  went  first  to  Sparta,  and  addressed  himself  to 
King  Cleomenes.  But  Cleomenes  was  not  favorably  impressed 
with  the  proposals  of  the  "  Milesian  stranger,"  and  ordered  him 
to  quit  Sparta  at  once.  Aristagoras  then  proceeded  to  Athens, 
in  the  hope  of  securing  there  the  assistance  that  was  refused  by 
Sparta. 

Affairs  at  Athens  were  in  a  shape  favorable  to  the  mission  of 
Aristagoras.  The  Athenians  had  just  driven  out  their  tyrants,  and 
given  a  more  democratic  form  than  ever  to  their  constitution 
through  the  reforms  of  Cleisthenes  (p.  121),  and  hence  were  natu- 
rally in  sympathy  with  the  recent  revolution  in  Ionia.  Moreover, 
Athens  was  regarded  as  the  mother  state  of  the  cities  of  Ionia,  and 
hence  the  Athenians  felt  that  the  aid  these  cities  now  solicited 
ought  not  to  be  withheld.  And  to  this  consideration  was  added 
their  own  cause  of  complaint  against  the  Persians,  because  they 
had  taken  the  part  of  the  Athenian  exiles,  and  had  demanded  that 
Hippias  be  taken  back  and  reinstated  in' his  former  authority  at 

1  Herod,  v.  35. 


THE  BURMING   OF  SARDIS.  143 

Athens.  The  Athenians  had  refused  to  do  this,  and  consequently 
they  were  already,  as  Herodotus  says,  "  in  bad  standing  with  the 
Persians,"  and  were  not  likely  to  be  as  circumspect  in  their  con- 
duct as  they  might  otherwise  have  been.  They  were,  therefore, 
easily  won  over  by  Aristagoras.  They  voted  that  twenty  ships 
should  be  sent  to  the  aid  of  the  lonians.  "These  ships,"  in  the 
words  of  Herodotus,  "  were  the  cause  of  great  harm  as  well  to  the 
Greeks  as  to  the  barbarians."^ 

The  Burning  of  Sardis  (499  b.c). — The  Athenian  fleet  sailed 
for  Ionia,  having  been  joined  by  five  triremes  furnished  by  the 
Eretrians,  of  Euboea,  who  enlisted  in  the  enterprise  out  of  grati- 
tude to  the  Milesians  for  services  rendered  them  in  one  of  their 
island  wars. 

From  the  Ionian  coast,  the  forces  of  the  expedition  marched 
upon  Sardis.  The  city  was  taken  without  opposition,  save  the 
citadel,  which  was  defended  by  a  force  under  the  command  of 
Artaphernes  himself.  The  Greeks  were  scarcely  in  possession 
of  the  place  before  a  fire  started  by  a  soldier  in  one  of  the  reed- 
thatched  houses  laid  the  whole  city  in  ashes.  Among  the  build- 
ings destroyed  was  the  temple  of  Cybele,  a  goddess  held  in  the 
highest  veneration  by  the.  Lydians  in  common  with  other  peoples 
of  Asia. 

Frightened  by  the  gathering  forces  of  the  Lydians  and  Persians, 
the  Greeks  withdrew  from  Sardis  and  took  up  their  line  of  retreat 
to  the  coast.  They  were  pursued  by  the  enemy,  and  near  Ephesus, 
where  they  finally  made  a  stand,  sustained  a  heavy  defeat.  Thor- 
oughly disheartened,  the  Athenians  now  forsook  their  Ionian  con- 
federates and  sailed  back  to  Athens. 

This  unfortunate  expedition  was  destined  to  have  momentous 
consequences.  The  Athenians  had  not  only  burned  Sardis,  but 
"  had  set  the  whole  world  on  fire."  When  the  news  of  the  affair 
reached  Darius  at  Susa,  he  asked,  it  is  said,  who  the  Athenians 
were,  and  being  informed,  called  for  his  bow,  and  placing  an  arrow 
on  the  string,  shot  upward  into  the  sky,  saying,  as  he  let  fly  the 

1  Herod,  v.  97. 


144  THE  REVOLT   OF  THE  lONIANS. 

shaft,  "  Grant,  O  Zeus,  that  I  may  have  vengeance  on  the  Athe- 
nians." After  this  speech,  he  bade  one  of  his  servants  every  day 
when  his  dinner  was  spread  to  repeat  to  him  three  times  these 
words  :  "  Master,  remember  the  Athenians."  ^ 

The  Spread  of  the  Revolt.  —  Deserted  by  the  Athenians,  the 
only  course  left  open  to  the  lonians  was  to  draw  as  many  cities 
as  possible  into  the  revolt.  They  accordingly  stirred  up  to  rebel- 
lion against  the  Persian  king  all  the  Greek  cities  of  the  Hellespont 
and  the  Propontis,  together  with  the  Carians,  and  all  the  Greek 
and  barbarian  cities,  save  one,  on  the  island  of  Cyprus.  The 
movement  threatened  the  destruction  of  the  Persian  power  in  all 
those  regions  where  its  yoke  had  been  laid  upon  the  neck  of  once 
free  Hellenes.  It  was  an  opportune  time  for  setting  fast  Hmits  to 
the  threatening  advance  of  the  Persian  arms,  and  had  Sparta  and 
Athens  with  the  other  cities  of  Greece  only  lent  such  aid  to  their 
Asiatic  kinsmen  as  considerations  of  duty  and  prudence  dictated, 
the  decisive  battle  between  Greek  and  barbarian  might  have  been 
fought  in  this  Ionian  war,  and  European  Greece  have  been  saved 
from  the  great  invasion.  But  the  inability  of  the  Greek  cities  to 
stand  together  in  a  common  cause  was  never  more  lamentably 
illustrated  than  at  just  this  moment. 

Suppression  of  the  Rebellion  :  the  Fall  of  Miletus  (494  b.c). 
—  The  military  resources  of  the  Great  King  were  now  collected 
for  the  suppression  of  the  rebellion,  which  thus  at  a  blow  had 
separated  from  his  empire  the  long  reach  of  Asiatic  coast  land 
from  the  Bosporus  to  Lycia.  To  rehearse  in  detail  the  battles, 
sieges,  and  various  military  operations  that  filled  the  six  years  of 
fighting  that  now  followed,  would  be  both  tedious  and  uninstruc- 
tive.  We  shall,  therefore,  simply  speak  in  general  terms  of  the 
conduct  of  the  war  and  indicate  its  outcome. 

The  task  of  suppressing  the  rebellion  fell  upon  the  satrap  Arta- 
phernes.  Two  heavy  blows  were  dealt  the  insurgents  at  the  places 
most  remote  from  the  centre  of  the  revolt  —  in  Cyprus  and  on 
the  Hellespont.     The  revolt  in  the  island  of  Cyprus  was  first  put 

1  Herod,  v.  105. 


SUPPRESSION  OF  THE  REBELLION.  145 

down  with  the  aid  of  the  Phoenicians  and  other  maritime  tribu- 
taries. The  next  blow  was  struck  on  the  Hellespont,  five  cities 
on  the  Asian  shore  being  destroyed.  The  Persian  generals  moved 
promptly  and  energetically  in  this  direction,  in  order  to  prevent 
a  union  at  this  point  between  the  Thracians  and  the  revolted 
Greeks,  whereby  all  the  Persian  conquests  in  Europe  would  have 
been  endangered. 

The  land  and  sea  forces  of  the  Persians  at  last  closed  in  around 
Miletus.  The  maritime  resources  of  the  Persian  empire  at  this 
time  are  well  exhibited  in  the  immense  armament  that  gathered  in 
front  of  the  city  to  shut  it  in  by  way  of  the  sea.  There  was  finally 
collected  here  a  fleet  of  six  hundred  ships,  made  up  of  contingents 
from  the  several  maritime  countries  tributary  to  the  Great  King 
—  from  Phoenicia,  Egypt,  Cilicia,  and  Cyprus.  Of  all  these  vas- 
sals the  Phoenicians,  according  to  Herodotus,  showed  the  greatest 
zeal  in  the  undertaking.  This  was  but  natural,  since  Miletus,  the 
"  Queen  of  the  Sea,"  the  Venice  of  those  early  times,  had  for 
centuries  been  chief  among  those  Greek  cities  whose  commercial 
activity  had  driven  the  Phoenicians  from  the  ^gean ;  and  they 
were  now  hoping  that,  through  the  destruction  of  this  great  rival, 
the  trade  of  that  part  of  the  Mediterranean  might  again  fall  into 
their  hands. 

The  lonians  having  in  a  general  council  resolved  to  try  the 
fortunes  of  a  sea-fight  in  defense  of  Miletus,  mustered  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  Persian  naval  forces  a  fleet  of  three  hundred  and  thirty- 
three  triremes.  There  were  ships  from  Lesbos,  Chios,  Samos,  and 
various  cities  of  the  coast  land.  Had  the  lonians  been  willing  to 
submit  to  discipline,  and  all  been  steadily  loyal  to  the  common 
cause  of  Greek  freedom,  they  might  possibly  have  gained  a  de- 
cisive victory  over  the  barbarians.  But  both  these  conditions  were 
lacking.  The  indolent,  easy-going  lonians  preferred  lying  in  the 
shade  of  their  tents  on  the  shore  to  training  in  the  tiresome  naval 
exercises.  And  then  the  ex-tyrants  in  the  Persian  army,  speaking 
in  the  name  of  the  Great  King,  by  promises  and  threats,  had  sown 
the  seeds  of  treachery  among    the  Ionian  allies.      Under  these 


146  THE  REVOLT   OF  THE  IONIA NS. 

circumstances  the  battle  ^  naturally  proved  a  great  Persian  victory 
—  and  the  Ionian  cause  was  lost ;  for  the  scattering  of  the  sea- 
force  of  the  lonians  and  their  allies  meant  the  fall  of  Miletus,  which 
was  now  closely  beset  by  sea  and  land,  and  after  a  long  siege  taken, 
in  the  sixth  year  of  the  revolt.  The  most  of  the  men  were  slain, 
while  the  women  and  children  were  carried  off  in  a  body  and 
settled  in  a  town  called  Ampe,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Tigris. 

The  cruel  fate  of  Miletus  stirred  deeply  the  feelings  of  the 
Athenians.  They  must  have  felt  that  they  themselves  were,  in  a 
measure  at  least,  responsible  for  the  calamity,  through  their  deser- 
tion of  the  cause  of  their  kinsmen.  When,  the  year  following  the 
fall  of  the  city,  the  poet  Phrynichus  presented  in  the  theatre  at 
Athens  his  drama  entitled  the  Capture  of  Miletus^  the  people  were 
moved  to  tears,  and  afterwards  fined  the  poet  a  thousand  drachmas 
"for  recalling  to  them  their  own  misfortune."  They  also  made 
a  law  forbidding  the  presentation  of  the  piece  again.^ 

The  End  of  the  Ionian  Revolt. — After  the  fall  of  Miletus  the 
other  cities  that  still  held  out  were  quickly  conquered.  The  Greek 
fleet  having  been  scattered,  the  v^gean  was  defenseless,  and  Chios, 
Lesbos,  and  Tenedos  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Persians.  The 
remaining  cities  of  Ionia  shared  the  fate  of  Miletus.  They  were 
taken  and  burned,  and  the  fairest  of  the  boys  and  maidens  were 
carried  off  for  the  service  of  the  Great  King.  This  was  the  third 
time,  Herodotus  reminds  us,  that  the  lonians  had  been  reduced 
to  slavery,  —  first  by  Croesus,  then  by  Cyrus,  and  now  again  by 
Darius.  This  last  enslavement  was  worse  than  either  of  the 
others. 

After  the  reduction  of  Ionia  th^  Persian  fleet  sailed  to  the 
Hellespont,  in  order  to  complete  the  subjugation  of  that  region. 
All  the  cities  on  the  European  side  of  the  strait  were  taken  and 
burned.  The  inhabitants  of  Byzantium  and  Chalcedon,  prefer- 
ring exile  to  a  worse  fate,  fled  before  the  advancing  Persians,  and 
settled  in  Mesembria  on  the  Thracian  shore  in  the  Euxine.     In 

1  This  naval  fight  is  known  as  the  battle  of  Lade,  496  B.C. 

2  Herod,  vi.  31. 


THE  END    OF   THE   IONIAN  REVOLT.  147 

the  Chersonese  the  Greek  cities  were  also,  with  a  single  excep- 
tion, laid  waste. 

The  first  serious  attempt  of  the  enslaved  Greeks  to  recover 
their  lost  freedom  was  thus  suppressed.  The  eastern  half  of  the 
Greek  world,  filled  with  the  ruins  of  once  flourishing  cities,  and 
bearing  everywhere  the  cruel  marks  of  barbarian  warfare,  lay  in 
double  vassalage  to  the  reinstated  tyrants  and  the  Great  King. 
"  The  mild  Ionian  heavens  did  their  part  to  heal  the  wounds  : 
the  waste  places  were  again  in  time  built  upon,  and  cities,  such 
as  Ephesus,  bloomed  again  in  great  prosperity ;  but  as  to  a  his- 
tory of  Ionia,  that  was  for  all  time  past."  ^ 

References.  —  Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  v.  28-38,49-54,97-126;  ib.  \\. 
1-42.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece^  vol.  ii,  pp.  193-220.  Grote,  History  of 
Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iii.  pp.  492-521;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol. 
iv.  pp.  280-310.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  46-73.  Cox,  Lives 
of  Greek  Statesmen  :  "  Aristagoras." 

1  Curtius,  Griech.  Gesch.  i.  629  (6th  ed.). 


148         EXPEDirrONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST   GREECE. 


CHAPTER    X. 

THE   FIRST   AND   SECOND    EXPEDITIONS  OF   DARIUS 
AGAINST  GREECE. 

(492-490  B.C.) 

The  Reconstruction  of  Ionia  by  Artaphernes  after  the  Revolt. 

—  After  he  had  overcome  all  armed  resistance,  Artaphernes  regu- 
lated the  affairs  of  the  states  that  had  been  in  rebellion  against 
Persian  authority.  His  measures  were  in  general  wise,  if  we  ex- 
cept his  reinstatement  of  the  tyrants  instead  of  allowing  the 
Greek  cities  to  govern  themselves  under  their  democratic  con- 
stitutions. As  was  reasonable,  he  forbade  these  rulers  to  make 
war  upon  one  another,  and  required  them  to  submit  to  arbitration 
any  differences  that  might  arise  between  them.  Furthermore,  he 
made  a  fresh  survey  of  the  country,  a  measure  which  speaks  vol- 
umes as  to  the  waste  and  change  that  the  war  had  wrought,  and, 
dividing  the  land  anew  into  tax- districts,  established  the  tribute 
which  each  city  should  pay. 

Artaphernes  is  superseded  by  Mardonius  (492  b.c).  —  At  this 
stage  of  his  reconstructive  measures,  Artaphernes  was  superseded 
by  a  younger  and  more  active  man,  a  son-in-law  of  Darius.  Why 
Artaphernes  should  thus  have  been  set  aside,  it  is  difficult  to 
divine.  But  it  would  appear  that  a  party  opposed  to  him  at 
court,  by  criticism  of  the  way  in  which  he  had  conducted  the 
Ionian  war,  had  shaken  the  confidence  that  the  king  had  hitherto 
placed  in  him.  Moreover,  the  timid  and  conservative  policy 
of  Artaphernes  in  regard  to  an  attack  upon  the  Greek  cities  of 
Europe,  was  to  give  place  to  a  more  vigorous  and  aggressive  one, 


MARDONIUS'   EXPEDITION.  149 

which  should  widen  on  the  European  continent  the  possessions 
of  the  Great  King.  In  addition  to  all  this,  the  policy  of  ruling 
the  conquered  Greek  cities  by  means  of  the  tyrants,  —  a  policy 
which  had  resulted  very  unsatisfactorily  on  account  of  the  shifty 
character  of  the  despots  themselves,  —  was  to  be  given  up,  and 
the  government  in  the  cities  was  to  be  placed  again  in  the  hands 
of  the  people.  The  customs  and  political  preferences  of  the 
Greeks  were  to  be  respected,  and  their  characteristic  culture  left 
undisturbed,  while,  however,  they  were  to  be  incorporated  into  the 
Persian  empire,  and  were  to  maintain  towards  the  Great  King  the 
relation  of  tribute  and  homage-paying  vassals.^ 

That  this  in  general  was  the  policy  of  the  Philhellenic  party,  as 
the  historian  Curtius  names  it,  which  Mardonius  represented,  we 
have  a  right  to  believe  from  the  acts  themselves  of  the  young  com- 
mander ;  but  though  it  was  a  generously  conceived  policy  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  Persian  rulers,  to  whom  Ormuzd  seemed  to  have 
committed  the  task  of  regulating  the  affairs  of  the  world,  still  the 
part  assigned  in  it  to  the  Greek  race  was  one  which  it  was  by 
nature  wholly  disqualified  from  acting. 

Mardonius'  Expedition  against  Eretria  and  Athens  (492  b.c). 
—  Mardonius  was  to  carry  the  war  into  Europe,  and  punish  Eretria 
and  Athens  for  the  part  they  had  taken  in  the  burning  of  Sardis 
(p.  143).  To  this  end  he  marched  from  Susa  with  a  large  army 
down  to  the  Cicilian  coast,  where  he  himself  joined  the  fleet  there 
gathered,  and  then  proceeded  along  the  shores  of  Asia  Minor 
towards  the  Hellespont,  while  the  land  forces  were  led  by  other 
generals  across  the  country  to  the  same  rendezvous. 

Reaching  Ionia,  Mardonius  deposed  all  the  tyrants  whom  Arta- 
phernes  had  set  over  the  Greek  cities,  and  placed  the  government 
everywhere  in  the  hands  of  the  popular  party.  Resuming  his 
voyage,  he  hurried  to  the  Hellespont,  and  crossing  the  strait,  pro- 
ceeded with  a  large  land  and  naval  force  along  the  Thracian  shore 
towards  Greece. 

The  gods  averted  from  the  Greek  cities  the  threatened  danger. 

1  Curtius,  Griech.  Gesch.  i.  629 ;  ii,  3. 


150         EXPEDITIONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST   GREECE. 

As  the  fleet  was  rounding  Mount  Athos,  the  easternmost  of  the  three 
promontories  of  Chalcidice,  a  heavy  wind,  which  suddenly  issued 
out  of  the  north,  scattered  the  fleet,  dashing  about  three  hundred 
of  the  ships  to  pieces  upon  the  rocks,  and  overwhehning  in  the 
waters  more  than  twenty  thousand  men. 

Meanwhile  the  land  forces  under  Mardonius  were  receiving 
rough  treatment  at  the  hands  of  the  warlike  tribes  of  Thrace. 
Great  numbers  were  killed  and  Mardonius  himself  was  wounded. 
The  survivors  of  both  the  sea  and  the  land  forces  now  turned  back 
to  the  Hellespont,  and  the  expedition  was  abandoned  as  a  failure. 

Darius  demands  of  the  Greek  Cities  Earth  and  Water  as  Sym- 
bols of  Submission. — The  disaster  which  had  overtaken  the  Per- 
sian armament  did  not  avail  to  turn  Darius  from  his  purpose  of 
avenging  himself  upon  Athens  and  Eretria  and  subjecting  to  his 
authority  all  Greece.  Preparatory  to  a  second  attempt  against 
the  Greek  states,  he  called  upon  all  the  maritime  cities  of  his 
empire  for  contingents  of  transports  and  warships,  and  at  the 
same  time  sent  heralds  throughout  Greece  to  demand  of  the 
cities  earth  and  water  as  symbols  of  submission. 

Many  of  the  states,  both  on  the  mainland  and  on  the  islands, 
fearing  to  brave  the  anger  of  the  Great  King,  gave  the  emblems  de- 
manded. But  Sparta  and  Athens  both  refused  to  give  the  required 
tokens  of  submission,  and  even  went  so  far  in  their  indignation  as 
to  violate  the  persons  of  the  heralds,  the  Athenians  throwing  those 
that  appeared  in  their  city  into  a  pit,^  and  the  Spartans  casting 
those  who  made  the  demands  of  them  into  a  well  and  telling 
them  to  help  themselves  to  earth  and  water. 

Quarrel  between  the  -fflginetans  and  the  Athenians.  —  Among 
the  cities  which  gave  earth  and  water  to  Darius  was  ^gina,  situ- 
ated upon  a  little  island  bearing  the  same  name,  just  in  front  of 
the  seaport  of  Athens.  Now  between  Athens  and  ^gina  there 
had  been  a  long-standing  feud,  arising  chiefly  from  commercial 

i  The  Barathron  (BapaOpoj/),  which  was  a  cliff  or  chasm  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Hill  of  the  Nymphs,  outside  the  ancient  walls.  Criminals  were  flung  from  the 
precipice  before  as  well  as  after  execution. 


QUARREL:    ^GINETANS  AND  ATHENIANS.  151 

rivalry.  Consequently  the  Athenians  were  ready  to  put  the  very 
worst  construction  upon  the  act  of  the  ^ginetans.  They  per- 
suaded themselves  that  their  old  enemy  was  getting  ready  to  join 
the  Persians  in  their  threatened  attack  upon  Athens,  and  straight- 
way sent  commissioners  to  Sparta  to  complain  of  the  conduct  of 
the  ^ginetans,  and  to  ask  for  Spartan  intervention  on  the  ground 
that  this  was  a  matter  which  concerned  closely  all  Greece.  This 
embassy  proves  how  commanding  a  position  Sparta  at  this  time 
held  among  the  cities  of  Greece,  and  how  ready  even  Athens  was 
to  acknowledge  her  as  the  natural  protector  of  all  the  Hellenes. 

The  appeal  of  the  Athenians  was  favorably  received  by  the 
Spartans,  and  Cleomenes  went  himself  to  yEgina,  and  attempted 
to  seize  the  guilty  citizens.  But  he  was  resisted  on  the  ground 
that  if  the  Spartans  had  really  authorized  such  a  procedure  they 
would  have  sent  both  of  their  kings  on  the  errand,  and  Cleomenes 
was  baffled  in  his  purpose. 

The  course  of  the  ^ginetans  had  been  instigated  by  the  second 
Spartan  king  Demaratus,  who,  it  will  be  remembered,  had  helped 
to  cause  the  attempt  of  his  colleague  Cleomenes  to  restore  the  tyr- 
anny at  Athens  to  miscarry  (p.  125).  Cleomenes  now  returned  to 
Sparta  with  a  fixed  determination  to  rid  himself  once  for  all  of  his 
enemy.  To  effect  his  purpose,  he  caused  the  right  of  Demaratus 
to  the  throne  to  be  attacked  on  the  ground  of  alleged  illegitimacy 
of  birth.  The  matter  was  referred  for  a  decision  to  the  Delphian 
oracle,  which,  bribed  by  Cleomenes,  pronounced  against  Demara- 
tus. This  gave  his  place  to  Leotychides,  the  next  in  succession. 
Demaratus,  breathing  wrath  and  revenge,  soon  found  his  way  to 
Susa,  where  he  was  received  with  many  tokens  of  favor  by  Darius, 
who  naturally  was  delighted  at  having  in  his  service  an  ex-king  of 
Sparta.  Thus  was  added  another  to  the  ever-increasing  band  of 
the  enemies  of  the  Greeks  now  gathered  at  the  court  of  the 
Great  King. 

After  he  had  rid  himself  of  his  rival,  Cleomenes  returned  with 
the  new  king  to  ^gina.  The  ^ginetans  could  do  nothing  else 
now  save  to    yield  to  his   demands.     In  compliance  with  these. 


152         EXPEDITIONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST   GREECE. 

they  delivered  up  to  him  ten  of  their  chief  citizens.  These 
persons  Cleomenes  handed  over  to  the  Athenians,  by  whom  they 
were  to  be  held  as  hostages  for  the  good  conduct  of  the  ^ginetans 
in  case  the  Persians  should  make  an  attack  upon  Athens. 

The  Second  Persian  Expedition  crosses  the  ^gean;  the 
Capture  of  Eretria.  —  Meanwhile  Darius  was  completing  his 
preparations  for  the  invasion  of  Greece,  being  kept  firm  in  his 
resolve  by  the  remembrance  of  the  injury  he  had  received  from 
Athens  and  Eretria,  as  well  as  by  the  exhortations  of  the  Peisistra- 
tidse  and  other  Greek  exiles  at  Susa,  all  of  whom  without  ceasing 
urged  him  on,  each  hoping  to  find  his  own  interests  advanced  in 
the  enslavement  to  the  Persians  of  his  fellow-citizens. 

Since  Mardonius  had  led  his  expedition  only  to  destruction,  he 
was  now  deposed  from  his  command,  and  the  lead  of  the  new 
forces  was  entrusted  to  Datis  the  Mede  and  Artaphernes  the 
Persian,  the  latter  being  a  nephew  of  the  king.  Their  orders 
were  to  bring  the  inhabitants  of  Athens  and  Eretria  in  chains  to 
Susa. 

Instead  of  following  the  course  of  the  earlier  expedition  along 
the  dangerous  upper  shores  of  the  ^Egean,  Datis  and  Artaphernes 
struck  straight  across  the  sea  to  Euboea,  stopping  at  the  various 
islands  on  their  way,  and  taking  from  them  recruits  and  hostages. 
After  the  reduction  of  the  town  Carystus  in  Southern  Euboea,  the 
Persian  fleet  advanced  to  Eretria,  the  first  aim  of  the  expedition. 
The  Eretrians  sent  messages  to  Athens  for  aid.  The  Athenians 
immediately  ordered  the  four  thousand  cleruchs  recently  settled 
upon  the  Chalcidian  lands  (p.  126)  to  go  to  their  assistance.  This 
they  did.  But  unfortunately  it  was  in  Eretria  as  in  most  other 
Greek  cities.  The  citizens  were  divided  among  themselves,  and 
there  were  traitors  within  the  walls.  This  state  of  things  being 
made  known  to  the  Athenian  colonists,  they,  following  the  advice 
of  friends  in  Eretria,  abandoned  the  city  to  its  fate,  and  saved 
themselves  by  crossing  the  straits  into  Attica.  After  a  siege  of 
six  days,  the  city  was  betrayed  into  the  hands  of  the  Persians.  It 
was  sacked  and  burned  with  all  its  temples,  in  revenge  for  the  part 


THE  BATTLE    OF  MARATHON.  153 

the  Eretrians  had  taken  in  the  burning  of  Sardis.  All  the  inhabi- 
tants, the  men  together  with  their  wives  and  children,  were  loaded 
with  chains  and  put  on  board  the  Persian  ships,  to  be  carried  away 
as  slaves  to  Susa.  The  orders  of  Darius  as  to  Eretria  were  thus 
fulfilled. 

With  their  work  in  Euboea  done,  the  Persians  crossed  the  straits 
to  Attica,  to  wreak  like  vengeance  upon  Athens.  Utider  the  guid- 
ance of  the  aged  Hippias,  they  cast  anchor  in  the  bay  of  Marathon, 
barely  one  day's  journey  from  the  capital.  Here  was  a  sheltered 
roadstead,  edged  by  a  crescent-shaped  plain  backed  by  the  rugged 
ranges  of  Parnes  and  Pentelicus.  Upon  this  level  beach,  which 
offered  a  favorable  field  for  the  employment  of  their  cavalry,  the 
Persian  generals  disembarked  their  troops,  filled  with  confidence 
through  their  recent  successes. 

The  Battle  of  Marathon  (490  b,  c.).—  The  Athenians  made 
surpassing  efforts  to  avert  from  their  city  the  impending  destruc- 
tion. Each  of  the  ten  tribes  furnished  a  thousand  soldiers  led 
by  its  own  general,  and  thus  was  made  up  a  force  of  ten  thousand 
men. 

The  polemarch,  or  war-archon,  at  this  time  was  Callimachus, 
but  the  most  experienced  and  trusted  of  the  generals  was  Milti- 
ades.  At  a  council  of  war  of  the  commanders,  where  the  question 
was  whether  they  should  await  behind  their  walls  the  coming  of 
the  Persians,  or  march  out  and.  meet  the  invaders  on  the  open 
plains,  it  was  decided  that  the  little  army  should  hasten  to  Mara- 
thon and  there  offer  the  enemy  battle. 

While  the  Athenians  were  thus  preparing  themselves  for  the 
coming  fight,  a  fleet  runner,  Phidippides  by  name,  was  hurrying 
with  a  message  to  Sparta  for  aid.  The  practical  value  of  the 
athletic  training  of  the  Greeks  was  now  shown.  In  just  thirty-six 
hours  Phidippides  was  in  Sparta,  which  was  one  hundred  and  thirty- 
five  or  forty  miles  from  Athens.  He  informed  the  Spartans  of 
the  capture  of  Eretria  by  the  barbarians,  and  besought  their 
immediate  aid,  that  Athens,  the  most  ancient  of  Grecian  states, 
might  not  suffer  a  similar  fate.     But  it  so  happened  that  it  lacked 


154         EXPEDITIONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST   GREECE. 

a  few  days  of  the  full  of  the  moon,  during  which  interval  the  Spar- 
tans, owing  to  an  old  superstition,  dared  not  set  out  upon  a  military 
expedition.  However,  they  promised  aid,  but  marched  from 
Sparta  only  in  time  to  reach  Athens  after  all  was  over. 

Phidippides,  however,  brought  to  the  Athenians  a  message 
which  encouraged  them  greatly.  He  reported  that,  in  passing 
over  the  highlands  of  Arcadia,  he  had  seen  the  god  Pan,  who 
bade  him  say  to  the  Athenians  that  although  they  had  neglected 
him,  still  "  he  felt  kindly  towards  them,  and  would  aid  them  in 
the  future  as  he  had  aided  them  in  the  past."  ^  This  lent  to  the 
Athenians  more  strength  than  a  Spartan  contingent  would  have 
brought,  and,  after  the  war,  they  gratefully  dedicated  to  Pan  a 
temple  at  the  foot  of  the  Acropolis,  and  instituted  in  his  honor 
sacrifices  and  games. 

Assistance  more  tangible  came  from  Plataea.  The  Plataeans, 
firm  and  grateful  friends  of  the  Athenians  on  account  of  the 
protection  they  had  accorded  them  against  the  Thebans,  no 
sooner  had  received  their  appeal  for  help  than  they  responded  to 
a  man,  and  joined  them  at  Marathon  with  a  thousand  heavy- 
armed  soldiers. 

The  Athenians  and  their  faithful  allies,  numbering  about  eleven 
thousand  in  all,  took  up  their  position  just  where  the  hills  of 
Pentelicus  sink  into  the  plain  of  Marathon.  The  Persian  host, 
numbering  one  hundred  thousand, infantry  and  ten  thousand  cav- 
alry, occupied  the  low  ground  in  their  front,  while  their  war-ships 
and  transports  covered  the  beach  behind. 

Of  the  ten  Athenian  generals  five  were  in  favor  of  engag- 
ing the  enemy  at  once,  while  the  other  five  counselled  delay. 
Among  those  in  favor  of  prompt  action  was  Miltiades.  He  went 
to  the  war-archon,  CaUimachus,  with  whom  lay  the  casting  vote, 
and  represented  to  him  the  danger  in  deferring  the  fight.  The 
friends  of  Hippias  might  set  on  foot  a  movement  in  the  inter- 
est of  the  tyrant,  and  Athens  might  thus  be  thrown  into  confusion, 
and  everything  spoiled.     As  to  the  superior  number  of  the  bar- 

1  Herod,  vi.  15. 


THE  BATTLE    OF  MARATHON: 


155 


barians,  if  only  the  gods  held  aloof,  the  Athenians  need  have 
no  fear  of  the  issue  of  a  fight.  Persuaded  by  these  represen- 
tations, Callimachus  cast  his  vote  in  favor  of  engaging  the  enemy 
at  once.^ 

The  other  generals  who  had  voted  with  Miltiades,  as  the  day  of 
command  came  to  each,^  yielded  their  right  to  him,  in  order  that 
he  might  carry  out  at  once  the  decision  that  had  been  reached  ; 
but  Miltiades  refrained  from  battle  until  the  regular  rotation  of 
the  office  brought  his  own  day  of  command. 


larf,  Efi^t,  iatiim 


At  last  the  day  arrived  upon  which  the  future  of  Athens  and  of 
all  Greece  was  to  be  committed  to  the  cast  of  a  single  battle. 
Miltiades  drew  up  his  forces  in  battle  order  just  at  the  foot  of  the 
hills.  The  line  was  drawn  out  to  equal  length  with  that  of  the 
Persians,  the  centre  being  thin  and  weak,  but  the  wings  deep  and 
strong.     The  Platseans  formed  the  left  wing. 

i  As  to  the  time  and  place  of  this  debate  we  follow  the  account  of  Herodotus 
(vi.  109)  ;  but  Cornelius  Nepos  makes  it  to  have  occurred  at  Athens  before  the 
army  set  out  for  Marathon.     See  Grote,  History  of  Greece,  vol,  iv.  p.  31. 

2  The  supreme  command  came  by  rotation  to  each  of  the  generals  in  turn  for 
a  single  day. 


156         EXPEDITIONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST   GREECE. 

Sacrifices  having  been  offered  and  the  omens  being  auspicious, 
the  charge  was  sounded  and  the  Greeks  advanced  on  a  run  towards 
the  Persian  lines.  The  issue  of  the  battle  was  for  a  time  doubtful. 
The  centre  of  the  Greek  lines,  which,  as  we  have  seen,  had  been 
weakened  in  order  to  strengthen  the  wings,  was  broken  by 
the  barbarians,  and  pushed  back  towards  the  hills.  Meantime, 
however,  the  strong  thick-ranked  wings  had  broken  and  scattered 
the  portions  of  the  Persian  lines  confronting  them ;  and  now 
wheeling,  attacked  the  Persians  who  were  following  the  retreat- 
ing centre  of  the  Greeks.  This  movement  decided  the  batde. 
The  barbarians,  thus  set  upon,  gave  up  the  pursuit,  and  turned 
in  flight. 

The  Persians  fled  to  their  ships,  and  here  many,  while  trying  to 
board  the  vessels,  were  killed  by  the  pursuing  Greeks.  Some 
of  the  Greeks,  in  the  eagerness  of  the  pursuit,  even  laid  hold 
of  the  escaping  boats.  Seven  were  thus  captured ;  the  others 
escaped.^ 

Miltiades  at  once  dispatched  a  courier  to  Athens  with  intelli- 
gence of  his  victory.  The  messenger  reached  the  city  in  a  few 
hours,  but  so  breathless  that,  as  the  people  thronged  eagerly 
around  him  to  hear  the  news  he  bore,  he  could  merely  gasp, 
"Victory  is  ours,"  and  fell  dead. 

But  the  danger  was  not  yet  over.  The  Persians,  instead  of 
returning  to  the  coast  of  Asia,  sailed  round  Cape  Sunium,  and 
bore  down  upon  Athens,  thinking  to  take  the  city  before  the 
Athenian  army  could  return  from  Marathon.  This  course  is  said 
to  have  been  suggested  to  them  by  the  Alcmaeonidae,  and  it  was 

1  The  absence  from  the  battle  of  the  Persian  cavalry,  to  which  the  Persians  in 
fitting  out  their  expedition  had  attached  so  much  importance,  is  a  matter  of  sur- 
prise. Curtius  explains  this  by  supposing  that  the  Persians,  when  after  landing  at 
Marathon  they  found  themselves  confronted  by  the  Athenians,  had  reshipped  their 
horses,  with  the  intention  of  sailing  around  to  the  Peiraeus,  as  they  afterwards  really 
did,  and  attacking  Athens  before  her  defenders  could  be  recalled.  Miltiades,  as 
Curtius  surmises,  timed  his  attack  so  as  to  strike  the  Persians  when  a  part  of  their 
troops  were  already  on  board  the  ships  and  the  remainder  still  on  shore.  —  Griech. 
Gesch.  ii.  24  (6th  ed.). 


THE   BATTLE   OF  MARATHON.  157 

believed  that  persons  of  this  party,  by  the  flashing  of  a  shield 
on  Mount  Pentelicus,  had  given  the  Persians  a  preconcerted 
signal. 

Miltiades,  however,  informed  by  watchers  on  the  hills  of  the 
movements  of  the  enemy,  straightway  set  out  with  his  little  army 
for  the  capital,  which  he  reached  just  at  evening,  probably  on  the 
day  following  the  fight  at  Marathon.^  The  next  morning,  when 
the  Persian  generals  would  have  made  an  attack  upon  Athens, 
they  found  themselves  confronted  by  the  same  men  who  had 
beaten  them  back  from  the  Marathon  shore.  Shrinking  from 
another  encounter  with  these  citizen-soldiers,  the  Persians  spread 
their  sails  and  bore  away  for  the  Ionian  shore. 

The  day  following  the  battle,  the  Spartans,  two  thousand  in 
number,  arrived  at  Athens.  They  had  made  a  forced  march, 
covering  the  distance  between  Sparta  and  Athens  in  about  seventy- 
two  hours.  Before  returning  home  they  visited  the  battle-field 
and  looked  upon  the  yet  unburied  bodies  of  the  Persians.^  They 
bestowed  generous  praise  upon  the  Athenians  for  the  brave  fight 
they  had  made,  and  doubtless,  true  soldiers  as  they  were,  regretted 
that  they  had  not  had  part  in  it. 

The  most  unusual  honors  were  accorded  to  those  Athenians 
who  had  fallen  on  the  field.^  "  It  was  the  custom  of  the  Athe- 
nians to  carry  home  the  remains  of  those  who  had  fallen  in  battle 
and  place  them  in  the  fair  suburb  of  the  Ceramicus.  But  the 
excellent  bravery  of  the  heroes  of  Marathon  demanded  a  peculiar 
mark  of  honor ;  they,  and  they  alone,  were  buried  on  the  scene 
of  their  immortal  victory."  ^  Over  their  bodies  was  raised  a  great 
mound  of  earth,  which  forms  to-day  a  prominent  feature  of  the 
Marathonian  plain.  Surmounting  the  tumulus  were  ten  marble 
pillars,  on  which  were  inscribed  the  names  and  tribes  of  the  slain. 


1  There  is  some  doubt  on  this  point.     Herodotus  leaves  us  to  infer  that  the 
Athenians  returned  to  the  city  on  the  day  of  the  battle. 

2  Herodotus  makes  the  loss  of  the  Persians  6400. 

3  One  hundred  and  ninety-two  Athenians  were  slain. 
*  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  p.  91. 


158         EXPEDITIONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST   GREECE. 

Results  of  the  Battle  of  Marathon.  —  The  battle  of  Marathon 
is  justly  reckoned  as  one  of  the  "  decisive  battles  of  the  world." 
It  marks  a  turning-point  in  the  history  of  humanity.  The  battle 
decided  that  no  longer  the  despotism  of  the  East,  with  its  repres- 
sion of  all  individual  action,  but  the  freedom  of  the  West,  with  all 
its  incentives  to  personal  effort,  should  control  the  affairs  and 
mould  the  institutions  of  society.  The  tradition  of  the  fight  forms 
the  prelude  of  the  story  of  human  freedom  and  progress. 

By  the  Marathonian  victory,  the  budding  civilization  of  Athens 
was  saved  to  mature  its  fruit,  not  for  Hellas  alone,  but  for  the 
world.  We  cannot  conceive  what  European  civiHzation  would 
be  Hke  without  those  rich  and  vitalizing  elements  contributed  to 
it  by  the  Greek,  and  especially  the  Athenian  genius.  But  the 
germs  of  all  these  might  have  been  smothered  and  destroyed  had 
the  barbarians  won  the  day  at  Marathon.  Ancient  Greece,  as  a 
satrapy  of  the  Persian  empire,  would  certainly  have  become  what 
modern  Greece  became  as  a  province  of  the  empire  of  the  Asiatic 
Turks. 

Moreover,  the  overwhelming  defeat  which  the  handful  of  Athe- 
nian freemen  had  inflicted  upon  the  servile  hordes  of  the  Great 
King  broke  the  spell  of  the  Persian  name,  and  destroyed  forever 
the  prestige  of  the  Persian  arms.  The  victory  gave  the  Hellenic 
peoples  that  position  of  authority  and  pre-eminence  that  had  been 
so  long  held  by  the  successive  races  of  the  East.  It  marked  the 
beginning  of  European  history.  It  especially  revealed  the  Athe- 
nians to  themselves.  The  consciousness  of  resources  and  power 
became  the  inspiration  of  their  after  achievements.  They  did 
great  things  thereafter  because  they  believed  themselves  able  to 
do  them.  From  the  battle  of  Marathon  dates  the  beginning  of 
the  great  days  of  imperial  Athens. 

Miltiades  falls  into  Disgrace.  —  The  distinguished  services 
Miltiades  had  rendered  his  country,  made  him  the  hero  of  the 
hour  at  Athens.  Taking  advantage  of  the  public  feeling  in  his 
favor,  he  persuaded  the  Athenians,  the  year  following  the  battle 
of  Marathon,  to  put  in  his  hands  a  fleet  for  an  enterprise  respect- 


lV/1/^   BETWEEN  ATHENS  AND  /EGINA.  159 

ing  the  nature  of  which  no  one  save  himself  was  to  know  anything 
whatever.  Of  course  it  was  generally  supposed  that  he  meditated 
an  attack  upon  the  Persians  or  their  allies,  and  with  full  faith  in 
the  judgment  as  well  as  in  the  integrity  of  their  favorite,  the  Athe- 
nians gave  him  the  command  he  asked. 

But  Miltiades  abused  the  confidence  placed  in  him.  He  led 
the  expedition  against  the  island  of  Paros,  simply  to  avenge  some 
private  wrong.  The  undertaking  was  unsuccessful,  and  Miltiades, 
severely  wounded,  returned  to  Athens,  where  he  was  brought  to 
trial  for  his  conduct.  His  eminent  services  at  Marathon  pleaded 
eloquently  for  him,  and  he  escaped  being  sentenced  to  death,  but 
was  subjected  to  a  fine  of  fifty  talents,  the  cost  of  fitting  out  the 
expedition.  This  sum  he  was  unable  to  pay,  and,  being  cast  into 
prison,  died  soon  after  of  the  effects  of  his  wound.  His  son  Simon 
afterwards  paid  the  fine.  But  the  stain  of  Miltiades'  act  could 
not  be  effaced  even  by  filial  piety,  and  a  dark  blot  remained 
upon  a  reputation  otherwise  the  most  resplendent  in  Grecian 
history. 

War  between  Athens  and  .ffigina.  —  A  war  that  now  broke  out 
between  Athens  and  yEgina  was  at  once  a  sort  of  sequel  to  the 
second  Persian  invasion  under  Datis  and  Artaphernes,  and  a  pre- 
lude to  the  third  under  Xerxes.  It  will  be  recalled  that  just  before 
the  battle  of  Marathon  the  Athenians,  through  the  intervention  of 
the  Spartan  king  Cleomenes,  had  got  into  their  hands  ten  of  the 
leading  men  of  ^gina,  as  hostages  for  the  loyal  conduct  of  that 
city.^  The  ^ginetans  now  demanded  of  the  Athenians  the  return 
of  these  citizens  ;  but  the  Athenians  very  dishonorably  refused  to 
give  them  up,  notwithstanding  that  Leotychides,  king  of  Sparta, 
who  seconded  the  vEginetans  in  their  demands,  warningly  recited 

1  See  p.  152.  The  sequel  of  the  matters  there  detailed,  in  so  far  as  concerns  the 
chief  actor  in  them,  was  as  follows  :  the  bribery  of  the  Delphian  oracle  by  Cleom- 
enes, by  which  means  he  had  secured  the  deposition  of  his  colleague  Demaratus, 
soon  afterwards  became  known,  and  Cleomenes  was  driven  from  Sparta.  He 
busied  himself  among  the  Arcadian  cities  in  forming  a  league  against  his  own  state. 
The  ephors,  fearing  the  consequences  of  his  malicious  activity,  invited  him  to  return 
to  Sparta  and  resume  his  old  position  as  king.     He  did  so,  but  his  conduct  was  so 


160         EXPEDITIONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST   GREECE. 

to  them  the  story  of  the  fate  of  the  perfidious  Spartan  Glaucus 
(p.  49).  The  ^ginetans  retahated  by  seizing  an  Athenian  ship 
bearing  a  sacred  embassy,  and  thereby  got  into  their  hands  a 
number  of  the  prominent  citizens  of  Athens.  These  mutual  in- 
juries led  up  quickly  to  open  war  between  the  two  states.  Corinth, 
not  from  love  of  Athens,  but  from  hatred  of  her  commercial  rival 
^gina,  gave  indirect  aid  to  the  Athenians  by  selling  to  them  for 
a  nominal  sum  —  since  their  laws  forbade  the  loaning  of  the  public 
ships  —  twenty  of  their  war-galleys.  The  Argives,  in  a  somewhat 
similar  indirect  way,  aided  the  ^ginetans  by  allowing  a  thousand 
of  their  citizens  to  serve  as  volunteers  in  the  ^ginetan  army. 
For  several  years  the  war  was  carried  on  in  a  desultory  manner, 
without  any  decisive  advantage  being  gained  by  either  party. 

Themistocles  and  his  Naval  Policy.  —  At  this  time  there  came 
prominently  forward  at  Athens  a  man  whose  genius,  aided  by 
favoring  circumstances,  was  destined  to  create  the  naval  greatness 
of  the  Athenian  state.  This  was  Themistocles,  a  sagacious,  far- 
sighted,  versatile  statesman,  who,  in  his  own  words,  though  "  he 
knew  nothing  of  music  and  song,  did  know  how  of  a  small  city 
to  make  a  great  one."  He  was  an  ambitious  man,  whom  "  the 
trophies  of  Miltiades  robbed  of  sleep."  Unfortunately,  however, 
he  was  a  man  of  serious  defects  of  character,  the  nature  of  which 
his  own  acts  will  soon  reveal  to  us. 

Themistocles  saw  clearly  that  the  war  with  ^gina  could  be 
brought  to  a  successful  issue  only  through  the  adoption  by  Athens  of 
a  maritime  pohcy  that  should  transform  her  land  forces  into  a  naval 
power  overwhelmingly  superior  to  that  of  her  rival.  But  it  was 
not  alone  this  enemy  close  at  hand  that  Themistocles  had  in  view. 
While  many  among  the  Athenians  were  incHned  to  believe  that 

violent  that  the  ephors  finally  put  him  into  the  stocks  as  a  madman.  Watching 
his  opportunity,  he  committed  suicide.  "  The  significance  of  his  reign  lies  in  this: 
that  he  made  the  nearest  approach  to  a  military  despotism  ever  known  at  Sparta. 
.  .  .  Had  he  succeeded  in  his  attempt  .  .  .  the  Peloponnesus  might  have  been 
combined  under  the  rule  of  a  single  monarch,  an  event  which  would  certainly  have 
thrown  the  history  of  Greece  into  a  different  channel."  —  ABBOTT,  History  of  Greece, 
vol.  i.  pp.  100,  loi. 


ARISTEIDES   OPPOSES    THEMISTOCLES.  161 

the  battle  of  Marathon  had  freed  Athens  forever  from  the  danger 
of  another  Persian  attack,  Themistocles  was  clear-sighted  enough 
to  perceive  that  that  battle  was  only  the  beginning  of  a  tremen- 
dous struggle  between  Hellas  and  Persia,  and  the  signal  for  still 
another,  more  formidable,  invasion  of  Greece  by  the  barbarians. 
Hence  he  labored  incessantly  to  persuade  the  Athenians  to 
strengthen  tlrcir  navy,  as  the  natural  and  only  permanent  and 
reliable  defense  of  Hellas  against  subjection  to  the  Persian  power. 

Aristeides  opposes  the  Policy  of  Themistocles  and  is  ostracized 
(483  B.C.).  —  Themistocles  was  opposed  in  his  naval  policy  by 
Aristeides,  a  man  of  a  wholly  different  type,  and  whose  impartiality 
as  a  judge  and  scrupulous  integrity  as  a  citizen  had  earned  for  him 
the  title  of  "  the  Just."  Aristeides  was  an  old-fashioned  conserva- 
tive, who  was  distrustful  of  the  innovations  proposed  by  Themis- 
tocles. He  feared  that  Athens  would  make  a  serious  mistake  if 
she  converted  her  land  forces  into  a  naval  armament.  It  seemed 
to  him  a  wide  departure  from  the  traditions  of  the  fathers.  The 
sea  suggested  to  him  something  unsteady  and  adventurous.  He 
did  not  wish  to  see  the  landed  proprietors  and  the  staid  peasant 
farmers  of  Attica,  the  men  whose  firm  ranks  had  won  the  day  at 
Marathon,  converted  into  a  mob  of  sailors,  eager  to  embark  on 
doubtful  enterprises,  and  shifting  in  opinions  and  policy  as  the 
wind.  He  beheved  the  land  a  better  basis  than  the  sea  for  the 
support  of  a  great  Hellenic  state. 

The  contention  between  the  radical  democratic  party,  led  by 
Themistocles,  and  the  conservative  party,  headed  by  Aristeides, 
grew  at  length  so  bitter  that  the  peace  of  the  state  was  endangered. 
Aristeides  himself  is  said  to  have  told  the  Athenians  that  "  if  they 
were  wise  they  would  throw  both  himself  and  Themistocles  into 
the  Barathron."  The  Cleisthenean  device  of  the  ostracism  was 
finally  called  into  use  to  decide  the  matter.  Six  thousand  votes 
were  cast  against  Aristeides,  and  he  was  compelled  to  go  into  exile. 

It  is  related  that  while  the  vote  that  ostracized  him  was  being 
taken  in  the  popular  assembly,  an  illiterate  peasant,  who  was  a 
stranger  to  Aristeides,  asked  him  to  write  the  name  of  Aristeides 


162         EXPEDITIONS   OF  DARIUS  AGAINST  GREECE. 

upon  his  tablet.  As  he  placed  the  name  desired  upon  the  shell, 
the  statesman  asked  the  man  what  wrong  Aristeides  had  ever  done 
him.  "  None,"  responded  the  voter  ;  ''  I  do  not  even  know  him  ; 
but  I  am  tired  of  hearing  him  called  the  Just.'" 

The  Athenians  strengthen  their  Navy  and  fortify  the  Peiraens. 
—  After  the  banishment  of  Aristeides,  Themistocles  was  free  to 
carry  out  his  naval  policy  without  further  serious  opposition. 
Circumstances,  as  we  have  intimated,  happily  concurred  in  the 
advancement  of  his  plans.  Just  at  this  time  there  was  a  large  sum 
of  money  in  the  treasury  of  the  city,  which  had  been  derived  from 
the  pubhc  silver  mines  at  Lauriura,  in  the  southeastern  part  of 
Attica.  This  money  was  about  to  be  divided  among  the  citizens, 
but  Themistocles  persuaded  them  to  devote  it  to  the  building  of 
war-ships.  Within  a  year  or  two  a  hundred  or  more  ships  were 
added  to  the  Athenian  navy,  so  that  before  the  close  of  the  year 
481  B.C.  Athens  had  a  fleet  of  two  hundred  galleys,  and  was  con- 
sequently by  far  the  strongest  at  sea  of  all  the  cities  of  Hellas. 

While  the  fleet  was  in  process  of  construction  the  Athenians, 
here  also  under  the  inspiration  of  Themistocles,  were  at  work 
fortifying  the  Peiraeus,  with  a  view  to  making  it  instead  of  the 
old  roadstead  of  Phalerum  the  chief  port  of  Athens.  It  was  a 
little  farther  from  the  capital  than  the  harbor  at  Phalerum,  but 
in  all  other  respects,  particularly  in  its  defensibility,  was  vastly 
superior  to  it. 

Such  were  the  circumstances  under  which  Themistocles  induced 
the  Athenians  to  enter  upon  a  policy  which  was  to  prove  a  turning- 
point  in  the  history  of  their  city,  and  indeed  of  all  Hellas.  The 
^ginetan  war  was  thus  the  making  of  Athens  ;  for  had  it  not  been 
for  the  immediate  and  pressing  necessity  created  by  that  struggle, 
it  is  doubtful  whether  the  Athenians  could  have  been  persuaded, 
even  by  the  eloquence  of  Themistocles,  to  make  ready  against 
what  seemed  to  many  of  them  so  remote  a  contingency  as  another 
Persian  invasion.  But  these  ships,  built  primarily  to  be  used 
against  ^Egina,  were  the  very  galleys  which,  as  we  shall  see,  turned 
the  day  against  Xerxes  at  Salamis.     This  was  the  ground  for  the 


THE  ATHENIANS  STRENGTHEN   THEIR  NAVY.       163 

following  remarkable  assertion  of  Herodotus  :  "  The  ^ginetan 
war  proved  the  salvation  of  Hellas,  by  compelling  the  Athenians 
to  make  themselves  strong  on  the  sea."  ^  The  following  chapter 
will  be  a  commentary  upon  these  words. 

References. —  Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  vi.  43-45,  for  the  expedition  under 
Mardonius;  ih.  95-124,  for  the  second  expedition;  ib.  132-136,  Miltiades'  dis- 
grace. Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  223-268.  Grote,  History  of 
Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp.  1-64;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp. 
311-378.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  74-114.  Cox,  The  Greeks 
and  the  Persians  (Epoch  Series).  This  book  covers  the  whole  period  of  the 
struggle  down  to  the  battle  of  Mycale.  Creasy,  Decisive  Battles  of  the  World, 
ch.  i.,  entitled  "The  Battle  of  Marathon."  Cox,  Lives  of  Greek  Statesmen: 
"  Miltiades." 

1  Herod,  vii.  144. 


Fig.  25.     HOPLITE,  OR   HEAVY-ARMED   GREEK   WARRIOR. 


164  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 


CHAPTER  XL 

THE    INVASION    OF   GREECE    BY    XERXES:      THE    MARCH    TO 

THERMA. 

(480  B.C.) 

Darius  plans  the  third  Expedition  against  Greece.  —  No  sooner 
had  the  news  of  the  disaster  at  Marathon  been  carried  to  Darius 
than  he  began  to  make  gigantic  preparations  to  avenge  this  second 
defeat  and  insult.  He  called  upon  all  the  provinces  of  his  empire 
to  equip  new  and  larger  levies  of  troops,  and  to  furnish  in  increased 
amount  military  stores  of  every  kind.  The  king  proposed  to  lead 
the  new  expedition  in  person. 

The  last  plan  of  campaign,  that  followed  by  Datis  and  Arta- 
phernes,  and  which  made  Athens  the  direct  aim  of  an  armament 
launched  from  the  shores  of  Asia  Minor,  was  abandoned,  and  a 
return  made  to  the  earlier  plan  of  Mardonius,  which  made  the 
Hellespont  and  the  Thracian  shore  the  track  of  the  army  of 
invasion.  The  first  plan  of  attack  would,  through  lack  of  means 
of  transport,  have  necessarily  limited  the  number  of  the  invading 
army;  while  the  second  possessed  the  advantage  of  offering  an 
unsurpassed  opportunity  for  an  impressive  display  of  the  immense 
resources  of  the  Great  King. 

For  three  years  the  preparations  for  the  great  undertaking  were 
pushed  forward  with  unflagging  zeal.  Then  occurred  a  revolt  of 
the  Egyptians.  It  is  probable  that  this  trouble  had  been  stirred 
up  by  the  Greeks,  with  the  object  of  preoccupying  Darius  with 
home  affairs.  Just  at  this  juncture  Darius  died,  and  his  son  Xerxes, 
whose  mother  was  Atossa,  a  daughter  of  Cyrus  the  Great,  came  to 
the  throne  (486  B.C.). 


Xerxes  continues  preparations.  i65 

Xerxes  continues  the  Preparations  begun  by  Darius. — Xerxes' 

first  care  upon  coming  to  the  throne  was  to  suppress  the  revolt  in 
Egypt.  This  being  effected,  he  was  free  to  turn  his  attention  to 
the  Greeks.  The  king  himself  was  at  first  little  inclined  to  embark 
in  the  undertaking  against  Greece  planned  by  his  father;  but 
Mardonius,  whose  unfortunate  experience  in  the  expedition  he  had 
led  out  some  years  before  had  not  caused  him  to  abandon  the 
hope  and  ambition  of  some  day  being  satrap  of  the  beautiful  and 
rich  land  of  Greece,  was  incessantly  urging  the  king  not  to  forget 
the  duty  that  was  imposed  upon  him  of  punishing  the  Athenians 
for  all  the  injuries  they  had  done  the  Persians,  and  as  constantly 
representing  to  him  the  grand  opportunity  here  offered  for  adding 
a  country  excellent  in  soil  and  rich  in  cities  to  the  provinces  of 
his  empire.  Furthermore,  the  Aleuadse,  princes  of  the  city  of 
Larissa  in  Thessaly,  who  had  acquired  great  influence  and  power 
in  that  land,  had  sent  an  embassy  to  Susa,  promising  to  aid  the 
Persians  in  an  attack  upon  Greece.  The  Peisistratidae  at  Susa  also 
never  ceased  to  urge  Xerxes  to  a  vigorous  prosecution  of  the  plans 
of  his  father. 

Acted  upon  by  these  various  persuasions,  Xerxes  became  fully 
minded  to  lead  the  long-proposed  expedition  against  the  Greeks. 
Before  entering  upon  the  undertaking,  however,  the  king  is  repre- 
sented by  Herodotus  as  summoning  a  council  of  Persian  nobles 
to  acquaint  them  with  his  determination,  and  to  seek  their  advice. 
Artabanus,  the  uncle  of  Xerxes,  alone  opposed  him  in  his  design. 
The  immoderate  ambition  of  the  king,  in  view  of  the  envious 
nature  of  the  gods,  had  awakened  the  apprehensions  of  the  old 
and  experienced  counsellor,  and  he  labored  to  dissuade  him  from 
engaging  in  so  vast  a  project.  "  Dost  thou  not  see,"  said  he, 
"how  the  lightning  smites  always  the  highest  buildings  and  the 
tallest  trees?  Thus  often  the  mighty  host  is  overwhelmed  by 
lightning  and  tempest,  sent  by  the  jealous  gods ;  for  the  gods  are 
jealous  of  mortals,  and  will  allow  no  one  unduly  to  exalt  himself."  ^ 

1  Herod,  vii.  lo.  Such  views  as  these  of  the  envy  of  the  gods  were  of  course 
Greek  and  not  Persian.    See  above,  p,  54. 


166  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE   BY  XERXES. 

But  through  dreams  and  visions  Xerxes  was  confirmed  in  his 
purpose,  and  the  preparations  for  the  proposed  undertaking  were 
l5ushed  forward  with  new  energy  in  accordance  with  what  seemed 
the  manifest  will  of  heaven.^ 

From  the  suppression  of  the  revolt  in  Egypt  onward  for  four 
years,  all  Asia  was  kept  astir.  Levies  were  made  upon  all  the 
states  that  acknowledged  the  authority  of  the  Great  King,  from 
India  to  Macedonia,  from  the  regions  of  the  Oxus  to  those  of  the 
upper  Nile.  From  all  the  maritime  states  upon  the  Mediterra- 
nean were  demanded  vast  contingents  of  war-galleys,  transport- 
ships,  and  naval  stores. 

While  these  land  and  sea  forces  were  being  gathered  and 
equipped,  gigantic  works  were  in  progress  on  the  Thracian  coast 
and  on  the  Hellespont  to  ensure  the  safety  and  facilitate  the 
march  of  the  coming  hosts. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  the  expedition  of  Mardonius  was  ruined 
by  the  destruction  of  his  fleet  in  rounding  the  promontory  of  Mount 
Athos  (p.  150).  That  the  war-ships  and  transports  of  the  present 
armament,  upon  the  safety  of  which  the  success  of  his  undertaking 
so  wholly  depended,  should  not  be  exposed  to  the  dangers  of  a 
passage  around  this  projecting  tongue  of  land,  Xerxes  determined 
to  construct  across  the  isthmus  connecting  it  with  the  mainland 
a  canal  of  sufficient  depth  to  allow  the  passage  of  his  triremes 
two  abreast.  This  great  work  consumed  three  years.^  Traces  of 
the  cutting  may  be  seen  to-day,  the  line  of  the  trench  being 
marked  by  a  series  of  shallow  pools  of  water. 

1  Read  Herodotus,  vii.  8-19.  The  supernatural  element  which  the  historian 
introduces  into  his  account  of  this  council,  as  well  as  the  speeches  which  he  puts 
into  the  mouths  of  the  king  and  his  advisers,  are  manifestly  unhistorical ;  but  it 
would  be  an  error  to  suppose  that  for  this  reason  all  these  passages  of  Herodotus 
are  without  value  to  the  student  of  the  Graeco-Persian  wars.  The  supernatural 
features  of  the  account  will  show  how  an  intelligent  Greek  of  that  time  thought  and 
felt  about  such  matters ;  and  the  speeches,  like  those  which  Thucydides  later  put 
into  the  mouths  of  his  characters,  will  illustrate  what  opinions  and  policies,  in  the 
mind  of  the  Greeks  at  least,  could  consistently  be  attributed  to  the  various  coun- 
sellors around  the  Great  King. 

2  The  neck  of  land  is  something  over  a  mile  in  width,  and  rises  at  one  point 
about  fifty  feet  above  the  sea-level. 


THE  IIELLESPONTINE   BRIDGES  ARE  BROKEN.       167 

At  the  same  time  that  the  canal  at  Momit  Athos  was  being 
excavated,  a  still  more  gigantic  work  was  in  progress  upon  the 
Hellespont.  Here  Europe  was  being  bound  to  Asia  by  a  double 
bridge  of  boats,  probably  at  a  point  where  the  strait  is  about  one 
and  a  half  miles  in  width.  This  work  was  in  the  hands  of  Egyptian 
and  Phoenician  artisans.  The  vessels  that  bore  the  roadway  were 
kept  in  place  by  heavy  cables  of  flax  and  papyrus. 

In  addition  to  these  preparations,  Xerxes  caused  immense  stores 
of  provisions  for  man  and  beast  to  be  gathered  into  great  maga- 
zines along  the  proposed  line  of  march.  The  largest  depots  were 
established  along  the  Thracian  shore,  as  here  the  least  dependence 
could  be  placed  upon  securing  stated  supplies  from  the  inhabitants. 

By  the  spring  of  the  year  481  b.c.  the  preparations  for  the  long- 
talked-of  expedition  were  about  completed,  and  in  the  fall  of  that 
year  we  find  Xerxes  upon  his  way  to  Sardis,  which  had  been 
selected  as  the  rendezvous  of  the  contingents  of  the  great  army  of 
invasion. 

From  this  place  Xerxes  sent  heralds  once  more  to  all  the  Greek 
states,  except  Sparta  and  Athens,  that  had  refused  earth  and  water 
to  the  messengers  of  his  father;  conceiving  that  now,  with  a 
knowledge  of  the  vastness  of  the  Persian  army  which  was  march- 
ing upon  Europe,  they  might  think  better  of  their  former  refusal. 
The  king  did  not  send  embassies  to  the  Athenians  and  Spartans, 
because  of  the  violence  they  had  offered  the  Persian  heralds  on 
the  former  occasion  (p.  150). 

The  Hellespontine  Bridges  are  broken :  the  New  Bridges.  — 
Just  as  Xerxes  was  about  to  march  from  Sardis,  news  was  brought 
to  him  that  the  bridges  across  the  Hellespont  had  been  broken 
by  a  violent  storm.  Herodotus  relates  that  Xerxes  was  thrown  into 
a  great  passion  by  this  intelligence,  and  ordered  the  architects 
of  the  bridges  to  be  put  to  death,  the  Hellespont  to  be  scourged 
with  three  hundred  lashes,  and  fetters  to  be  thrown  into  the 
waters.  It  was  also  told  in  the  historian's  day  that  the  king  had 
even  ordered  the  straits  to  be  branded  with  branding  irons.  The 
scourgers  at  least  faithfully  carried  out  the  orders  of  their  master. 


168  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

and  as  they  lashed  the  traitorous  and  rebeUious  waters,  cursed 
them  "  in  non-Hellenic  and  blasphemous  words."  ^ 

•  Other  architects  were  now  ordered  to  span  the  straits  with 
two  stronger  bridges.  The  upper  bridge,  that  is,  the  one  towards 
the  Euxine,  was  supported  by  three  hundred  and  sixty,  and  the 
lower  one  by  three  hundred  and  fourteen  triremes  and  pentecos- 
ters,  placed  parallel  with  the  current,  and  all  securely  anchored, 
so  as  to  resist  not  only  the  current  of  the  Hellespont  but  also  the 
power  of  the  prevailing  winds. 

There  were  three  gaps  left  in  the  Unes  of  the  boats,  in  order  to 
allow  the  free  passage  up  and  down  the  straits  of  light  craft.  Each 
bridge  was  provided  with  six  cables,  made  of  flax  and  papyrus, 
placed  a  little  distance  apart  and  drawn  taut  by  means  of 
capstans.  Upon  the  cables  thus  arranged  were  placed  and  securely 
fastened  heavy  planks,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  form  a  continuous 
roadway  from  shore  to  shore.  Upon  these  were  strewn  small 
branches  of  trees,  and  over  these  was  laid  a  covering  of  earth, 
well  pressed  down.  The  roadways  were  protected  by  parapets,  to 
prevent  accident  in  the  passage  of  the  horses  and  the  beasts  of 
burden.^ 

Crossing  of  the  Hellespont.  —  All  these  works  being  completed, 
with  the  first  indication  of  the  approaching  spring  of  the  year  480 
B.C.,  just  ten  years  after  the  defeat  of  Datis  and  Artaphernes  at 
Marathon,  the  vast  Persian  army  broke  up  its  winter  quarters  at 
Sardis,  and  began  its  march  towards  Europe. 

Arriving  at  Abydos  upon  the  Hellespont,  Xcixes,  from  a  marble 
throne  that  had  been  set  up  on  a  neighbonLg  hill,  reviewed  his 
fleet,  and  overlooked  at  once  all  his  land  and  sea  forces.  As  he 
beheld  the  innumerable  army  filling  all  the  plain  below  him,  and 
the  vessels  of  his  fleet  hiding  the  waters  of  the  Hellespont,  his  first 
feeling  was  one  of  pride  and  exultation,  but  after^vards  he  wept ; 
and  when  Artabanus  expressed  surprise  at  this  rudden  change  in 
feeling,  the  king  replied  :  "  \  great  wave  of  pity  passed  over  me, 

1  Herod,  vii.  35, 

2  Herod,  vii.  36. 


MAP 

ILLUSTRATING  THE 

INVASION  OF 

G  R  E  E  C  E 

by 
XEKXES 


^ 


CROSSIN-G    OF   THE   HELLESPONT.  169 

as  I  thought  how  short  is  the  life  of  man,  and  reflected  that  of  all 
this  multitude,  numberless  as  it  is,  not  one  will  be  living  a  hundred 
years  from  now."  ^ 

The  passage  of  the  straits  as  pictured  in  the  inimitable  narration 
of  Herodotus  is  one  of  the  most  dramatic  of  all  the  spectacles 
afforded  by  history. 

Before  the  troops  began  to  cross,  prayers  were  offered,  the 
bridges  were  strewn  with  branches  of  the  sacred  myrtle,  and 
incense  was  burned  upon  them,  while  the  sea  itself,  just  as  the 
sun  arose,  was  placated  with  a  libation,  poured  from  a  golden 
censer  by  the  king  himself,  who  at  the  same  time  prayed  towards 
the  sun  for  success  in  his  great  undertaking.  Then  he  cast  into 
the  water  the  golden  cup  with  which  he  had  poured  the  libation, 
together  with  other  treasures,  either  as  a  sacrifice  to  the  sun-god, 
or  as  an  expiatory  offering  to  the  Hellespont  for  the  scourging  he 
had  given  it. 

The  passage  of  the  troops  now  began.  To  avoid  accident  and 
delay,  the  trains  of  baggage-wagons*  and  the  beasts  of  burden 
crossed  by  one  causeway,  while  the  foot-soldiers  and  the  cavalry 
crossed  by  the  other.  The  first  of  the  host  to  cross  were  the 
sacred  guard  of  the  Great  King,  the  Ten  Thousand  Immortals,  — 
so  called  because  their  number  was  never  allowed  to  fall  below 
ten  thousand,  —  all  crowned  with  garlands  as  in  festival  procession. 
Following  them  was  the  great  multitude  of  various  nations ;  and 
then,  preceding  the  king,  and  moving  slowly,  came  the  resplendent 
chariot  of  the  Sun  (Ormuzd),  drawn  by  eight  milk-white  horses, 
all  richly  caparisoned,  with  the  charioteer  on  foot,  for  no  mortal 
was  ever  permitted  to  enter  the  sacred  car.  Then  came  the  king, 
accompanied  by  his  lancers  and  his  mounted  guard,  and  after  him 
the  remaining  multitudes  of  different  races.  For  seven  days  and 
nights,  Herodotus  affirms,  the  bridges  groaned  beneath  the  living 
tide  that  Asia  was  pouring  into  Europe.  It  seemed  more  like  a 
migration  of  the  nations  than  the  march  of  a  regular  army.^ 

1  Herod,  vii.  44-46. 

2  Herod,  vii.  54,  55. 


170  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

The  Census  and  Review  at  Doriscus.  —  The  crossing  of  the 
straits  having  been  successfully  accomplished,  the  land  forces 
marched  up  the  Chersonese  to  the  mainland,  then  turned  west- 
ward and  followed  the  Thracian  coast  to  the  plain  of^  Doriscus, 
through  which  the  Hebrus  flows  into  the  sea,  where  through 
prearrangement  they  joined  the  fleet,  which  meanwhile  had  sailed 
round  the  lower  point  of  the  peninsula,  and  crept  along  the 
shore  to  the  point  named.  Here  were  a  strong  Persian  fortress 
and  garrison.  Upon  the  extended  plain  Xerxes  drew  up  all  his 
forces  for  review  and  census.  The  ships  of  the  fleet  were  dragged 
ashore  and  beached,  and  the  men  they  bore  were,  it  would  seem, 
enumerated  with  the  others. 

The  countless  host  could  be  numbered  in  no  usual  way.  Ten 
thousand  men  were  crowded  in  as  close  a  body  as  possible,  and 
then  the  space  they  had  occupied  was  enclosed  by  a  low  wall. 
The  enclosure  thus  formed  was  made  the  unit  of  enumeration. 
It  was  packed  with  soldiers,  and  when  no  more  could  find  room 
to  stand,  it  was  inferred  that  ten  thousand  were  within.  One 
hundred  and  seventy  times  was  the  enclosure  filled  and  emptied. 
According  to  this  rude  enumeration,  the  land  forces  of  Xerxes 
amounted  to  1,700,000.  The  naval  force  brought  the  number  up 
to  the  amazing  total  of  2,317,000.  Herodotus  adds  to  this  an 
equal  number  of  slaves  and  attendants,  and  thus  represents  the 
entire  host  as  numbering  between  five  and  six  million  persons. 
We  are,  by  many  considerations,  forced  to  believe  that  these 
figures  of  the  historian  are  greatly  exaggerated  and  that  the 
actual  number  of  the  Persian  army,  counting  land  and  sea  forces, 
could  not  have  exceeded  900,000  men. 

But,  in  any  event,  we  may  safely  believe  that  the  army  was  the 
largest  that  the  world  had  yet  seen  gathered  for  any  undertaking. 
To  Herodotus  it  seemed  as  though  all  the  peoples  of  Asia  and 
of  Africa  were  there  bent  upon  the  ruin  of  Greece.  Forty-six 
different  nations  were  marching  with  Xerxes  to  the  war.  The 
costumes  and  equipments  of  the  different  contingents  were  as 
varied  as  the  countries  whence  they  came.     There  was  every 


THE    CENSUS  AND  REVIEW  AT  DORISCUS.  171 

variety  of  dress,  from  the  light  cotton  tunic  of  the  native  of  India 
to  the  leopard  or  lion  skin  in  which  the  Ethiopian  wrapped  his 
body.  Some  were  clad  in  bronze  armor ;  others  offered  their 
naked  bodies  to  the  blows  of  the  enemy.  The  weapons  borne 
varied  from  the  well-tempered  blade  of  Damascus  to  the  fire- 
hardened  stave  of  the  Libyan.  Some  of  the  nomadic  horsemen 
were  armed  simply  with  the  lasso.^ 

Among  all  these  nations  the  Persians  were  accounted  the  bravest 
and  most  reliable  in  battle.  They  wore  rich  garments,  and,  after 
the  Persian  fashion,  displayed  upon  their  persons  a  vast  quantity 
of  gold  ornaments.  They  were  accompanied,  in  many  instances 
at  least,  by  their  wives ;  and  the  richest  had  trains  of  slaves  and 
beasts  of  burden. 

The  fleet  was  composed  of  1207  triremes,  —  besides  3000 
transports  and  crafts  of  various  description,  —  of  which  the  Phoe- 
nicians and  the  Syrians  had  furnished  300,  the  Egyptians  200,  the 
Cyprians  150,  the  Cilicians  100,  the  Pamphylians  30,  the  Lycians 
30,  the  Carians  70,  and  the  Greeks  of  Asia,  of  the  northern 
islands  of  the  ^Egean,  and  of  the  Hellespont,  307.  The  large 
number  of  Greek  ships  shows  to  how  great  a  degree  Xerxes 
was  employing  the  resources  of  that  part  of  the  Greek  world 
which  he  had  already  subjugated,  to  reduce  to  submission  the 
remaining  portion. 

It  excites  our  surprise,  as  it  moved  the  wonder  of  Herodotus, 
that  five  of  these  Greek  ships  were  under  the  command  of  a 
woman  —  Artemisia  by  name,  queen  of  Halicarnassus,  and  ruler 
of  several  other  Dorian  cities.  It  was  her  energetic  and  adven- 
turous spirit  alone  that  had  led  her  to  attach  herself  to  the 
expedition  of  Xerxes.  She  rendered  special  service,  as  we  shall 
learn,  both  in  battle  and  in  council  to  the  Great  King. 

1  The  following  are  the  nations  which  Herodotus  mentions  as  furnishing  con- 
tingents to  the  army  of  Xerxes  :  the  Persians,  the  Medes,  the  Cissians,  the  Hyrca- 
nians,  the  Assyrians,  the  Chaldeans,  the  Bactrians,  the  Scythians,  the  Indians,  the 
Arians,  the  Parthians,  and  various  other  nations  of  Central  Asia  ;  the  Arabians,  the 
Ethiopians,  and  the  Libyans;  the  Paphlagonians  and  other  peoples  of  Asia  Minor; 
the  Thracians  and  various  other  European  tribes. 


172  THE   INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

After  the  census,  Xerxes  reviewed  the  whole  armament,  riding 
in  his  chariot  through  the  ranks  of  the  land  forces,  and  pass- 
ing in  a  galley  in  front  of  the  line  of  ships,  which  had  been 
pushed  from  the  beach,  and,  with  every  man  of  their  crews  and 
their  fighting  force  at  his  post,  arranged  side  by  side  in  a  close 
row,  their  prows  all  being  turned  in  the  same  direction.  With 
the  review  completed,  the  troops  and  ships  proceeded  on  their 
way.^ 

The  Army  augmented  by  Greeks,  Thracians,  and  Macedoni- 
ans. —  The  army,  upon  leaving  Doriscus,  moved  forward  in  three 
parallel  columns,  each  under  its  own  commander.  All  this  region 
through  which  the  Persians  were  now  marching,  it  will  be  recalled, 
had  been  brought  under  the  Persian  yoke  by  the  earUer  cam- 
paigns of  the  Persian  general  Megabazus  (p.  138).  Conse- 
quently all  the  Greek  cities  of  the  coast  were  forced  to  add  their 
contingents  of  ships  to  the  naval  force  of  Xerxes,  and  the  Thracian 
tribes  of  the  interior  to  send  companies  of  warriors  to  swell  the 
ranks  of  the  land  forces,  while  the  vassal  prince  Alexander  of 
Macedonia,  when  that  country  was  reached  by  the  Persian  columns, 
felt  constrained  to  join,  with  all  his  fighting  force,  the  retinue  of 
the  Great  King. 

Reaching  the  river  Strymon,  which,  hke  the  Hellespont,  had 
been  bridged,  the  Persians,  in  obedience  to  that  same  feeling  in 
regard  to  the  sacredness  of  streams  that  had  led  Xerxes  to  offer 
placatory  sacrifices  to  the  Hellespont,  propitiated  the  river  god  by 
the  sacrifice  of  a  number  of  sacred  white  horses,  and  by  various 
Magian  rites ;  and  just  at  the  place  where  the  army  crossed  the 
stream,  known  as  "The  Nine  Ways,"  they  buried  alive  nine  native 
boys  and  nine  maidens.^ 

The  Stryrnon  being  passed,  the  army  soon  reached  the  neck  of 
the  peninsula  of  Mount  Athos,  where  the  great  canal  had  been  cut 
for  the  fleet.  Xerxes  was  greatly  pleased  with  the  state  in  which 
he  found  this  work,  and  rewarded  the  inhabitants  of  Acanthus, 

1  For  the  whole  paragraph,  see  Herod,  vii.  59-100. 

2  Herod,  vii.  114. 


BURDENSOME  ENTERTAINMENTS,  173 

who  had  shown  themselves  zealous  in  the  matter,  with  the  royal 
commendation  and  rich  presents. 

Burdensome  Entertainments.  —  Before  setting  out  from  Sardis, 
Xerxes  had  sent  forward  heralds  to  order  the  cities  on  the 
proposed  line  of  march  to  prepare  repasts  for  the  army  as  it 
advanced,  and  to  furnish  special  deUcacies  for  the  royal  table. 
Many  of  the  cities,  moved  either  by  policy  or  by  fear,  made 
extraordinary  efforts  to  comply  with  the  royal  wishes.  For 
months  before  the  arrival  of  the  king,  the  inhabitants  were  busy 
grinding  wheat  and  barley,  fattening  cattle  and  poultry,  collecting 
cups  and  vessels  for  table  service,  and  in  making  other  prepara- 
tions for  the  suitable  entertainment  of  their  coming  guest. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  island  of  Thasos,  who  held  lands  on 
the  continent,  felt  constrained  to  give  Xerxes  an  entertainment 
which  cost  them  $500,000  in  our  money.  Other  cities  provided 
entertainments  almost  as  costly.  But  the  situation  might  have 
been  worse,  as  appears  to  have  been  recognized  by  a  certam 
Greek,  a  man  who  seems  to  have  had  the  faculty  of  seeing  the 
bright  side  of  things,  who  proposed  to  his  fellow-citizens,  after 
they  had  with  "  vast  labor  "  served  a  repast  for  the  king  and  his 
army,  that  they  should  go  in  a  body  to  the  temple  and  "  thank  the 
gods  that  Xerxes  was  accustomed  to  eat  only  once  a  day ;  for  had 
he  required  them  to  prepare  breakfast  as  well  as  dinner,  either 
they  must  have  run  away  before  his  coming,  or  remaining  at 
home  have  been  reduced  to  a  state  of  utter  destitution."^ 

Xerxes  visits  the  Pass  of  Tempo.  —  Leaving  Acanthus,  the 
army  and  the  fleet  separated.  The  fleet,  after  having  passed 
through  the  canal,  sailed  around  the  two  remaining  peninsulas  of 
Chalcidice,  and,  receiving  large  accessions  of  ships  from  the  cities 
on  the  way,  drew  up  at  Therma,  on  the  Thermaic  gulf,  where  it 
was  joined  by  the  army,  whose  line  of  march  ran  directly  across 
the  Chalcidian  land. 

From  his  camp  at  Therma,  Xerxes  caught  his  first  view  of  the 
mountains  of  Greece.     Far  away  towards  the  south  the  summits 

1  Herod,  vii.  118-120. 


174  THE  INVASION   OF  GREECE   BY  XERXES. 

of  Olympus  and  Ossa  arose  above  the  horizon.  Having  a  great 
longing  to  behold  with  his  own  eyes  the  wonderful  Pass  of 
Tempe,  of  which  he  had  been  told,  he  caused  a  Phoenician 
galley  to  bear  him  to  the  spot.  The  great  gorge  seems  to  have 
moved  the  wonder  of  the  king ;  yet  his  thoughts  would  appear  to 
have  been  directed  not  so  much  to  the  grandeur  or  picturesque- 
ness  of  the  scenery,  as  to  the  opportunity  for  mischief  that  the 
formation  of  the  land  here  afforded  to  an  enemy  seeking  the  harm 
of  the  ThessaUans.  He  asked  his  guides  whether  there  was  any 
other  passage  by  which  the  waters  of  the  Peneus  could  be  led  to 
the  sea.  Upon  being  informed  that  Thessaly  was  upon  every  side 
surrounded  by  mountains,  with  only  this  single  gorge  of  Tempe 
as  an  outlet  for  its  waters,  he  remarked  that  he  now  understood 
why  the  Thessahan  princes  had  in  such  good  time  sent  him 
tokens  of  their  submission  (p.  165);  for  how  easily  could  he  have 
caused  this  gorge  to  be  filled,  and  thus  have  converted  all 
Thessaly  into  a  lake.^  Having  completed  his  inspection  of  the 
pass,  Xerxes  returned  to  his  army.^ 

In  the  Tempe  pass,  Xerxes  "  stood  at  the  door  of  Hellas.  Only 
a  few  weeks  before,  ten  thousand  full-panoplied  men  were  here 
encamped,  in  order  at  the  threshold  of  the  Amphictyonic  lands  to 
meet  the  invading  enemy :  now  all  was  deserted,  the  pass  open, 
the  village  empty,  the  army  gone.  Where  were  the  Greeks? 
How  were  they  prepared  to  receive  the  land  and  sea  forces  of 
all  Asia,  which,  gaining  constant  accessions  of  strength  from  the 
Greek  cities  as  they  moved  on,  had  for  aim  the  subjection  of 
Greece?  For  now  the  Persian  attack  concerned  not  alone  the 
Athenians,  as  was  the  case  ten  years  before,  but  all  the  races  and 
states  of  Hellas."  3 

Considering  how  much  was  at  stake,  our  wonder  is  moved  that 
the  Greeks  should  have  left  the  most  important  pass  leading  into 
Northern  Greece  undefended.     And  this  leads  us  to  turn  from 

1  See  p.  2. 

2  Herod,  vii,   128-130. 

sCurtius,  Griech.  Gesch.  ii.  47  (6th  ed.). 


XERXES   VISITS   THE  PASS   OF  TEMPE.  175 

watching  the  movements  of  the  Persian  army  of  invasion,  in 
order  to  notice  what  Athens  and  other  Greek  cities  were  doing 
to  avert  the  impending  danger. 

References.  —  Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  viii.  1-130.  Cmims,  Hislory  of 
Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  269-283.  Grote,  History  of  Greect  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol. 
iv.  pp.  102-143;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  v.  pp.  1-44.  Abbott,  History  of 
Greece^  vol.  ii.  1 15-139. 


176  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE   BY  XERXES. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES :    THERMOPYL^  AND 
ARTEMISIUM. 

(480  B.C.) 

The  Greeks  in  Council  at  Corinth  (481  b.c).  —  The  Greeks  of 
the  continent  had  not  remained  in  ignorance  of  what  was  going 
on  in  Asia.  From  time  to  time  startUng  rumors  of  the  vast  prepa- 
rations that  the  Great  King  was  making  to  enslave  them  were 
borne  across  the  ^gean  to  their  ears.  At  last  came  the  news 
that  Xerxes  was  about  to  begin  his  march.  Something  must  now 
be  done,  and  done  quickly.  Mainly  through  the  exertions  of 
Themistocles,  a  council  of  the  Greek  cities  was  convened  at 
Corinth,  in  the  fall  of  the  year  481  b.c,  for  the  purpose  of  con- 
certing measures  for  the  defense  of  Grecian  liberties.  But  on 
account  of  rivalries,  feuds,  and  party  spirit,  many  of  the  states  of 
Hellas  held  aloof  from  the  alliance,  and  could  not  be  brought  to 
work  with  the  others  for  the  defense  of  the  common  Grecian  land. 
The  reception  accorded  the  envoys  sent  by  the  states  in  council 
to  Argos,  Syracuse,  Corcyra,  and  Crete,  asking  them  to  help 
repel  the  threatened  invasion  from  Asia,  will  better  than  anything 
else  disclose  to  us  how  divided  at  this  critical  moment  was  the 
strength  of  even  that  part  of  the  Hellenic  world  that  still  re- 
mained free. 

The  Embassy  to  the  Argives.  —  And  first  as  to  the  embassy 
to  Argos.  It  seems  that  the  Argives,  who  had  kept  themselves 
informed  respecting  the  movements  of  Xerxes,  had  been  expect- 
ing that  they  would  be  called  upon  by  the  other  Greeks  to  lend 


EMBASSY   TO    GELO   OF  SYRACUSE.  177 

help  against  the  barbarians,  and,  in  order  that  they  might  in  such 
a  case  know  how  to  act,  had  sent  a  messenger  to  Delphi  to  ask 
the  advice  of  the  oracle. 

Notwithstanding  that  the  oracle  in  the  answer  returned  had 
plainly  counselled  them  not  to  take  part  in  the  coming  war,  still 
the  Argives,  in  reply  to  the  message  from  the  confederates,  prom- 
ised to  join  them,  provided  the  Spartans  would  first  consent  to 
a  truce  with  them  of  thirty  years,  and  moreover  divide  with  them 
the  chief  command  of  the  confederate  forces. 

The  object  of  the  truce  which  the  Argives  made  one  of  the 
conditions  of  their  joining  the  alliance  was  to  gain  time  for  the 
fining  up,  by  the  growth  of  their  boys  into  manhood,  of  the  great 
gaps  made  in  their  ranks  by  the  recent  terrible  loss  of  six  thousand 
of  their  fighting  men  (p.  73).  The  demand  for  joint  leadership 
with  the  Spartans  in  the  conduct  of  the  war  was  inspired,  not  only 
by  present  jealousy  of  Sparta*  but  also  by  a  remembrance  of  the 
time  when  Argos  held  that  very  place  of  leadership  among  the 
Greek  states  which  was  now  claimed  and  maintained  by  Sparta. 

The  Spartans  refused  assent  to  the  demands  of  the  Argives  for 
an  equal  share  in  the  command  of  the  allied  forces,  but  did 
express  a  willingness  to  allow  the  single  Argive  king  a  place 
alongside  the  two  kings  of  Sparta.  As  this  arrangement  would 
have  given  Sparta  two  out  of  three  votes,  the  leadership  would 
practically  have  been  in  the  hands  of  the  Spartans,  and  con- 
sequently this  proposal  was  indignantly  rejected  by  the  Argives, 
who  said  in  substance  that  they  would  rather  be  subjects  of  the 
barbarians  than  of  the  Spartans. 

It  was  natural  that  the  unpatriotic  conduct  of  the  Argives 
should  have  caused  reports  to  circulate  among  the  Greeks  which 
ascribed  their  refusal  to  take  part  in  the  war  to  the  very  basest 
motives.  It  was  said  that  they  had  been  bribed  by  Xerxes.  They 
were  even  accused  of  having  urged  the  Persians  to  come  into 
Greece,  in  the  hope,  through  the  enslavement  of  the  land,  of 
gaining  some  advantage  for  themselves. 

Embassy  to   Gelo   of   Syracuse.  —  The  embassy  to  Gelo,  the 


178  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE   BY  XERXES. 

tyrant  of  Syracuse,  was  not  more  successful  than  that  to  the 
Argives.  Gelo  was  at  this  time  the  most  powerful  despot  in  the 
Hellenic  world.  He  had  raised  Syracuse  to  a  high  pitch  of  pros- 
perity and  splendor,  having  greatly  increased  the  population  of 
the  place  by  settling  within  its  walls  the  better  class  of  the  in- 
habitants of  neighboring  cities  which  he  had  overcome  in  war. 

The  envoys  of  Athens,  Sparta,  and  the  other  confederates,  being 
admitted  to  the  presence  of  Gelo,  represented  to  him  the  critical 
state  of  the  Greeks  in  the  East,  and  besought  his  help  in  repelling 
the  threatened  invasion  of  the  barbarians.  They  further  admon- 
ished the  tyrant  not  to  deceive  himself  with  the  notion  that  the 
Persian  king  would  limit  his  conquests  to  Greece.  With  that  land 
enslaved,  he  would  surely  proceed  without  delay  to  subdue  the 
Greek  cities  of  the  West. 

Replying  to  the  envoys,  Gelo  promised  to  send  an  army  of 
forty-four  thousand  men,  foot  and  horse,  and  two  hundred 
triremes.  He  further  offered  to  furnish  corn  for  the  whole  Greek 
army  during  the  war.  The  condition,  however,  upon  which  Gelo 
made  this  splendid  offer  was  that  he  himself  should  be  given  the 
leadership  of  all  the  aUied  forces. 

One  of  the  Lacedaemonian  envoys  indignandy  rejected  the 
proposals  of  Gelo,  saying  that  groans  would  break  from  Agamem- 
non's grave  should  his  shade  hear  that  Sparta  had  yielded  pre- 
cedence in  Greece  to  Syracuse,  and  the  tyrant  was  constrained  to 
modify  the  conditions  of  his  offer  by  agreeing  to  still  send  the 
armament  named,  provided  he  were  given  the  command  either  of 
the  land  or  of  the  sea  forces.  But  to  the  proposal  in  this  form 
the  Athenian  envoys  objected,  saying  that  the  Athenians,  the 
possessors  of  the  largest  navy  in  the  Greek  world,  the  only  people 
in  Greece  who  had  always  lived  upon  the  same  spot,  and  who, 
according  to  the  testimony  of  Homer,  had  sent  to  the  Trojan  War 
one  of  the  best  of  the  leaders  of  the  Greeks,^  though  they  might 
yield  the  command  of  the  fleet  to  Sparta  if  she  wanted  it,  still 

1  Mencstheus. 


THE  M EDI  ZING   PARTY  AMONG    THE    GREEKS.       179 

would  never  consent  that  that  leadership  should  be  given  to  any 
other  people,  and  certainly  not  to  the  Syracusans. 

Gelo,  sarcastically  remarking  to  the  envoys  that  they  seemed  to 
be  well  supplied  with  commanders,  but  were  likely  to  be  in  need 
of  men  to  receive  commands,  dismissed  them,  and  the  hope  that 
the  cities  of  Greece  had  entertained  of  receiving  succor  from 
Sicily  was  at  an  end.^ 

Embassies  to  the  Corcyraeans  and  the  Cretans. — The  Cor- 
cyraeans,  who  at  this  time  stood  next  to  the  Athenians  in  naval 
strength,  made,  to  the  envoys  who  invited  their  aid,  ready  prom- 
ises of  help.  But  these  islanders  were  treacherous.  It  was  late 
before  they  moved,  and  then  the  fleet,  consisting  of  sixty  ships, 
which  they  sent  out,  hung  about  the  southern  coast  of  the  Pelo- 
ponnesus, waiting  for  the  issue  of  the  expected  battle,  and  ready 
to  join  whichever  side  chanced  to  be  victorious. 

Nor  was  any  assistance  secured  from  the  Cretans.  After  hear- 
ing the  request  of  the  envoys,  they  sent  a  message  to  Delphi  to 
get  the  advice  of  the  oracle.  The  oracle  reminded  them  how  the 
assistance  that  their  fathers  gave  to  Menelaus  in  the  war  against 
Troy  brought  to  them  nothing  but  loss  and  suffering,^  and  thus 
intimated  very  plainly  that  they  would  be  fools  if  they  engaged  in 
another  quarrel  between  the  Greeks  and  the  Asiatics,  which  was  no 
concern  of  theirs. 

The  Medizing  Party  among  the  Greeks.  —  Thus,  through  dif- 
ferent causes,  many  of  the  Hellenic  cities  refused  to  join  the 
confederation,  so  that  only  about  fifteen  or  sixteen  states  ^  were 

1  Herod,  vii.  153-162,  for  the  whole  interview.  It  is  not  probable  that  Gelo  was 
serious  in  his  proposal  to  send  an  army  to  the  help  of  the  Greeks  in  the  home 
land,  since  just  at  this  time  he  was  threatened  by  the  Carthaginians,  by  whom,  as 
we  shall  see,  he  was  actually  attacked  later,  at  just  the  moment  when  the  fight  with 
the  barbarians  in  Greece  was  at  the  hottest. 

2  Legend  tells  how  the  resentful  shade  of  Minos  brought  famine  and  pestilence 
upon  the  Cretans  for  helping  the  Greeks  in  the  Trojan  War,  notwithstanding  some 
time  before  the  Greeks  had  refused  to  assist  the  Cretans  in  avenging  his  murder  in 
Sicily,  whither  he  had  gone  in  search  of  Daedalus. 

3  These  included  all  the  important  states  of  European  Greece,  save  Argos  and 
Thebes.     The  latter  city  refused  to  join  the  alliance  from  jealousy  of  Athens. 


180  THE   INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

brought  to  unite  their  forces  against  the  barbarians ;  and  even  the 
strength  of  many  of  these  cities  that  did  enter  into  the  alHance 
was  divided  by  party  spirit.  The  friends  of  ohgarchical  govern- 
ment were  almost  invariably  friends  of  Persia,  because  the  Persian 
king  looked  with  more  favor  upon  oligarchical  than  democratical 
government  in  his  subject  Greek  cities.  Thus,  for  the  sake  of  a 
party  victory,  the  oligarchs  were  ready  to  betray  their  country 
into  the  hands  of  the  barbarians.  To  make  their  conduct  appear 
less  outrageous  to  the  common  Hellenic  mind,  some  of  these 
so-called  "  Medizing  ^  Greeks  "  even  tried  to  make  out  that  the 
Persians  were  the  descendants  of  the  Greek  hero  Perseus,  and 
hence  pure  Hellenes,  submission  to  whom  could  not  be  regarded 
as  disgraceful. 

Furthermore,  the  Delphian  oracle  was  wanting  in  courage,  if 
not  actually  disloyal,  and  by  its  timid  responses,  as  witness  the 
oracles  given  to  the  Argives  and  the  Cretans  (pp.  177,  179),  dis- 
heartened the  patriot  party. 

Resolutions  of  the  Corinthian  Council. —  But  under  the  in- 
spiration of  Themistocles  the  cities  in  convention  at  Corinth 
determined  upon  desperate  resistance  to  the  barbarians.  They 
resolved  that  all  feuds  existing  between  members  of  the  league 
should  be  extinguished,  and  solemnly  bound  themselves,  after  the 
struggle  should  be  over,  to  make  united  war  upon  any  and  every 
city  that  should,  unless  constrained  by  force,  submit  to  the 
Persians,  and  to  dedicate  one-tenth  of  the  spoils  to  the  shrine  of 
the  Delphian  Apollo. 

The  Spartans  were  given  the  chief-  command  of  both  the  land 
and  the  naval  forces.  The  Athenians  might  fairly  have  insisted 
upon  their  right  to  the  command  of  the  alHed  fleet,  but  they 
patriotically  waived  their  claim  for  the  sake  of  harmony. 

Passing  at  last  to  the  consideration  of  the  question  where  they 
should  make  their  first  stand  against  the  invaders,  the  allies 
decided  to  concentrate  a  strong  force  at  the  Pass  of  Tempe,  and 

1  The  reference,  of  course,  is  to  the  Medes,  by  which  term  the  Greeks  usually 
designated  the  Persians. 


THE    GREEK   GARRISON  AT    TEMPE.  181 

at  that  point  to  dispute  the  advance  of  the  enemy.  They  were 
influenced  to  this  decision  by  the  presence  at  Corinth  of  envoys 
from  the  Thessalians,  —  for  the  Thessalians  in  general  were  op- 
posed to  the  course  of  the  Aleuadae  princes  (p.  165), —  who 
urged  the  confederates  to  cover  Thessaly  by  a  guard  at  the  defile 
of  Olympus,  assuring  them  that  the  Thessalians  would  not  be 
slack  in  their  devotion  to  the  common  Grecian  cause ;  but  at 
the  same  time  warning  the  allies  that,  if  they  did  not  thus 
strengthen  their  hands  against  the  invaders,  they  would  be  com- 
pelled to  make  the  best  terms  they  could  for  themselves  with 
the  Persians. 

The  Greek  Garrison  at  Tempe  and  at  Thermopylae.  —  The 
force  which  the  allies  sent  to  the  Pass  of  Tempe  amounted  to 
about  ten  thousand  heavy-armed  men,  the  Athenian  contingent 
being  under  the  command  of  Themistocles.  To  this  force  the 
Thessalians,  according  to  their  promise,  added  a  considerable 
body  of  cavalry.  Scarcely  had  the  Greeks  taken  their  stand  in 
the  defile  of  Tempe,  before  intelligence  was  brought  to  them  that 
the  Persians  were  intending  to  enter  Thessaly  through  another 
pass  some  distance  inland,  leading  over  the  Olympian  range  from 
Macedonia.  It  was  impracticable  for  the  Greeks  to  defend  this 
second  pass,  for  the  reason  that  the  entrance  to  the  same  on  the 
northern  side  was  held  by  the  Macedonians,  who  were  tributaries 
of  the  Great  King.  Consequently  the  allies  abandoned  the  idea 
of  holding  the  Pass  of  Tempe,  and  returned  by  ship  to  Corinth. 
These  circumstances  will  explain  how  it  happened  that  Xerxes 
on  his  visit  to  the  pass  should  have  found  it  open  and  unde- 
fended (p.  174). 

It  was  most  unfortunate  that  the  march  of  the  Persians  could 
not  have  been  intercepted  at  these  passes  on  the  northern 
frontier  of  Greece,  for  then  the  strength  of  the  Thessalians  would 
have  been  secured  to  the  patriot  party ;  whereas  now  the  forces 
of  the  entire  Thessalian  region  went  to  swell  the  Grecian  con- 
tingent in  the  army  of  invasion.  It  seemed  as  though  Hellas 
were  doomed  through  unhappy  circumstances,  as  well  as  through 


182  THE  INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

the  selfish  misconduct  of  cities  and  parties,  to  become  herself  the 
instrument  of  her  enslavement  to  the  barbarians. 

After  the  withdrawal  of  the  forces  of  the  allies  from  the  Pass  of 
Tempe,  and  the  consequent  abandonment  of  all  Northern  Greece 
to  the  invaders,  it  was  resolved  upon  by  the  council  at  Corinth 
to  garrison  the  Pass  of  Thermopylae,  and  at  that  point  to  offer  the 
first  resistance  to  the  march  of  the  Persian  army.  As  a  cover  to 
the  force  in  the  pass,  it  was  decided  that  the  allied  fleet  should  be 
stationed  at  the  north  end  of  Euboea,  where  it  could  command 
the  entrance  to  the  strait  running  between  this  island  and  the 
mainland.  These  resolves  of  the  Corinthian  Council,  upon 
receipt  of  the  intelligence  that  the  Persian  army  was  already  at 
the  northern  foot  of  the  ranges  of  Olympus,  were  at  once  carried 
into  execution. 

Having  now  taken  a  glance  at  the  situation  of  affairs  among  the 
Greeks,  and  noticed  what  preparations  they  were  making  to  meet 
the  approaching  danger,  we  must  return  to  Therma,  where  we 
left  the  Persian  army,  and  watch  its  further  progress. 

The  Persian  Army  advances  to  Thermopylae  and  the  Fleet 
to  Artemisium.  —  Pushing  on  from  Therma,  the  Persians  climbed 
the  Olympian  range,  a  road  having  been  cut  through  the  woods 
that  covered  the  summit,  and,  marching  across  Thessaly,  drew  up 
at  last  on  the  Malian  plains,  in  front  of  the  guards  that  the  Greeks 
had  stationed  in  the  Pass  of  Thermopylae.  This  march  was  made 
by  the  army  without  special  incident. 

Before  the  main  fleet  put  out  from  Therma,  ten  of  the  swiftest 
galleys  were  sent  in  advance  more  than  a  hundred  miles  down  the 
coast,  to  spy  out  the  way.  Near  Cape  Sepias,  the  Persian  vessels 
came  upon  three  watch-ships  of  the  Greeks.  Two  of  these  with 
their  crews  the  barbarians  captured,  and,  taking  the  Greek  first 
made  prisoner,  who  chanced  to  be  a  man  of  unusual  beauty,  sacri- 
ficed him  at  the  prow  of  one  of  their  ships,  which  seems  to  have 
been  done  in  accordance  with  a  custom  of  the  barbarians  to  thus 
sacrifice  as  a  good  omen  the  first  of  their  captives. 

Signal  fires,  lighted   by   watchers   on    the    island    of  Sciathus, 


THE  BATTLE    OF   THERMOPYLAE,  183 

informed  the  Greek  ships  anchored  off  Artemisium  of  what  had 
taken  place.  The  terror  spread  through  the  fleet  by  the  intel- 
ligence was  such  that  the  Greeks  at  once  lifted  their  anchors,  and 
retreated  down  the  Eubcean  straits  to  Chalcis,  thinking  that  the 
narrowness  of  the  channel  at  that  point  would  deprive  the  Persians 
of  the  advantage  they  possessed  in  the  number  of  their  ships. 

Following  closely  the  ten  advance  ships,  the  whole  Persian  fleet 
of  triremes  now  moved  down  the  coast  to  Cape  Sepias  in  Mag- 
nesia, making  the  entire  distance  of  one  hundred  and  three  miles 
in  a  single  day.^  As  only  a  very  short  reach  of  the  coast  here 
presented  a  favorable  beach,  the  boats  in  the  moorage  were 
arranged  eight  deep  along  the  strand,  those  in  the  landward  row 
being  moored  to  the  shore,  while  those  of  the  remaining  rows 
swung  at  anchor.  While  in  this  position  the  fleet  was  struck  by  a 
violent  storm,  which  lasted  for  three  days.  The  ships  nearest  the 
shore  were  saved  by  being  hastily  pulled  upon  the  beach ;  many 
of  those  farther  out  were  driven  ashore  both  above  and  below  the 
place  of  anchorage,  and  broken  to  pieces  upon  the  rocks.  Four 
hundred  triremes  were  lost,  together  with  an  uncounted  number 
of  merchant  ships  and  of  men. 

The  moral  effect  upon  the  Greeks  of  this  disaster  was  great, 
inasmuch  as  they  firmly  believed  that  the  gods  of  the  winds  had 
interposed  in  their  behalf.  Thus  inspired  with  new  courage,  the 
Greeks  at  Chalcis  now  moved  their  vessels  back  to  their  first 
anchorage  at  Artemisium ;  while  the  ships  of  the  Persian  fleet 
that  had  escaped  the  storm  crept  around  the  southern  point  of 
Magnesia,  and  found  a  quiet  haven  in  the  Pagassean  bay. 

The  Greeks  and  the  barbarians  were  now  face  to  face  on  the 
land  and  on  the  water.  The  Persian  fleet  will  attempt  to  force 
its  way  through  the  strait  at  Artemisium,  while  the  Persian  army 
will  endeavor  to  clear  of  its  Grecian  guards  the  Pass  of  Ther- 
mopylae.    The  great  fight  in  the  pass  will  first  claim  our  attention. 

The  Battle  of  Thermopylae  (480  b.c).  — The  pass  that  was  to 
witness  the  heroic  defense  which  has  forever  associated  its  name 

1  Herod,  vii.  126. 


184 


THE   INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 


with  patriotic  devotion  and  martial  discipline  calls  for  no  extended 
description  to  render  intelligible  the  account  of  the  struggle  that 
there  took  place.  It  was  at  this  time  a  narrow  causeway,  —  the 
deposits  of  streams  have  changed  the  spot  much  in  the  course  of 
the  succeeding  centuries,  —  bordered  on  one  side  by  precipitous 
mountains,  and  on  the  other  pressed  so  closely  by  the  sea  or  marsh- 
ground  that  there  was  not  sufficient  room  for  two  wagons  to  pass 


THERMOPYIi^ 


each  other.  At  the  foot  of  the  cliffs  broke  forth  a  number  of  hot 
springs,  hence  the  name  of  the  pass,  Thermopylae,  or  "  Hot  Gates." 
In  this  narrow  pass  it  was  that  the  Greeks,  in  accordance  with 
the  resolution  of  the  Corinthian  Congress,  made  their  first  stand 
against  the  Persians.  Leonidas,  king  of  Sparta,  with  three  hundred 
Spartans  and  about  six  thousand  allies,  mainly  Arcadians,  Corin- 
thians, Thespians,  and  Thebans,  held  the  pass.^ 

1  Arcadia  had  sent  2220  men ;  Corinth,  400;  Philius,  200;  Mycenae,  80;  Thes- 
piae,  700;  Thebes,  400;  Phocis,  icxxd;  and  the  town  of  Opus  in  Lotris,  a  number 
not  stated.    Herod,  vii.  202-203. 


THE  BATTLE    OF   THERMOPYLM.  185 

The  three  hundred  Spartans  that  formed  the  body-guard  of 
Leonida^^-were  picked  men,  somewhat  advanced  in  years,  and 
evcfy'^e  with  a  son  left  behind  at  Sparta,  so  that  no  Spartan 
family  should  become  extinct  through  the  possible  accidents  of 
battle.  From  this  unusual  precaution  taken  by  Leonidas,  —  for 
the  body-guard  of  a  Spartan  king  was  ordinarily  composed  of 
young  men,  —  we  may  rightly  infer  that  he  realized  when  he  set 
out  from  Sparta  that  he  was  leading  a  forlorn  hope. 

The  Thebans  were  in  the  pass  against  their  will.  They  were, 
through  enmity  towards  the  Athenians,  friendly  disposed  towards 
the  Persians ;  but  when  Leonidas,  just  to  test  their  loyalty  to  the 
Grecian  cause,  called  upon  them  to  rally  with  the  other  Greeks  at 
Thermopylae,  they  dared  not  refuse. 

The  force,  all  told,  was  an  insignificant  one  to  hold  against  the 
Persian  host  a  pass  upon  the  safe-keeping  of  which  so  much 
depended ;  but  it  so  happened  that  the  Greeks  in  general  were 
just  getting  ready  for  the  celebration  of  the  Olympian  games, 
while  the  Spartans  in  particular  were  making  preparations  for  the 
observance  of  a  festival  in  honor  of  Apollo,  and  rather  than  post- 
pone these  the  Greeks  left  the  handful  of  men  at  Thermopylae 
unsupported  to  hold  in  check  the  Persian  army  until  the  festival 
season  was  past.  Such  action  of  the  Greeks  at  this  critical 
moment  of  their  affairs  illustrates  with  what  sincerity  of  religious 
feeUng  and  absorption  of  interest  they  regarded  their  sacred 
festivals  and  games. 

Among  the  Greeks  at  Thermopylae,  now  confronted  by  the 
Persians,  there  was  a  division  of  opinion.  Those  from  the  Pelopon- 
nesus urged  a  retreat  to  the  Isthmus  of  Corinth,  but  the  men  from 
Phocis  and  Locris  insisted  upon  a  defense  of  the  pass  which  they 
had  been  sent  to  hold.  The  proposal  of  the  Peloponnesians,  if 
acted  upon,  meant  the  abandonment  of  all  Central  Greece,  as 
Northern  Greece  had  already  been  abandoned,  to  the  invaders. 
It  was  decided  by  the  voice  of  Leonidas  that  all  should  remain  at 
Thermopylae,  and  the  fight  be  made,  not  for  the  Peloponnesus  alone, 
but  for  all  Greece  lying  southward  of  the  spot  where  they  stood. 


186  THE  INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

Without  the  co-operation  of  his  fleet,  Xerxes  could  dislodge 
the  Greeks  in  the  pass  only  by  a  direct  attack  in  front.^  Before 
assaulting  them,  he  summoned  them  to  give  up  their  arms.  The 
answer  of  Leonidas  was,  "  Come  and  take  them."  The  temper 
of  his  companions  was  apparently  as  resolute  as  his  own.  One  of 
them  just  before  the  battle  being  told  by  somebody,  who  thought 
to  frighten  him,  that  the  number  of  the  barbarians  was  such  that 
their  arrows  "  would  obscure  the  sun,"  quietly  rephed,  "Very 
well,  we  shall  then  fight  in  the  shade." 

For  two  days  the  Persians  stormed  the  pass,  the  Asiatics  being 
driven  to  the  attack  by  their  officers  armed  with  whips.  But 
every  attempt  to  clear  the  way  was  foiled ;  even  the  Ten  Thou- 
sand Immortals,  whom  at  last  Xerxes  sent  forward,  thinking  they 
would  make  a  quick  end  of  the  resistance,  were  hurled  back 
from  the  Spartan  front  like  waves  from  a  cliff. 

But  an  act  of  treachery  on  the  part  of  a  Malian,  Ephialtes  by 
name,  the  "Judas  of  Greece,"  rendered  unavailing  all  the  heroism 
of  the  keepers  of  the  pass.  Running  over  the  mountain  on  the 
flank  of  Leonidas  was  a  footway,  by  which  a  force  might  be  led 
to  the  rear  of  the  Greeks.  Where  the  path  crossed  the  summit 
of  the  ridge,  the  Phocians  kept  guard.  This  mountain  path  was 
revealed  to  Xerxes  by  Ephialtes,  and  under  his  guidance  a  Persian 
force,  commanded  by  the  satrap  Hydarnes,  stealthily  made  its  way 
by  night  to  the  spot  where  the  Phocians  were  keeping  watch. 
As  soon  as  the  Phocians  became  aware  of  the  approach  of  the 
enemy,  they  retreated  a  short  distance,  in  order  to  gain  a  more 
advantageous  position ;  but  by  this  movement  they  left  the  path 
open,  and  the  Persians,  without  stopping  to  attempt  to  dislodge 
the  Greeks,  hastened  on  towards  the  goal  of  their  march. 

The  startling  intelligence  was  brought  to  Leonidas  that  the 
Persians  were  descending  the  mountain  path  in  his  rear.  He 
realized  instantly  that  all  was  lost.      His  allies,  save  the  Thebans, 

1  The  disaster  which  had  befallen  the  Persian  ships  off  Magnesia,  and  the 
advance  of  the  Greek  fleet  to  Artemisium,  prevented  Xerxes  from  landing  a  force 
farther  down  the  coast  in  the  rear  of  Leonidas. 


MEMORIALS  AND  INCIDENTS   OF   THE  FIGHT.        187 

were  given  permission  to  seek  safety  in  flight  while  opportunity 
remained.  But  for  Leonidas  and  his  Spartan  companions  there 
could  be  no  thought  of  retreat.  Death  in  the  pass,  the  defense 
of  which  had  been  entrusted  to  them,  was  all  that  Spartan  honor 
and  Spartan  law  left  them.  Still  another  consideration  is  said  to 
have  weighed  with  Leonidas.  A  little  before  this  the  Pythia  at 
Delphi  had  given  the  Spartans  an  oracle  to  the  effect  that  either 
their  city  or  one  of  their  kings  must  needs  become  the  prey  of 
the  Medes.  Leonidas,  as  is  related  of  Codrus  (p.  103),  resolved 
to  die  for  the  advantage  of  his  country. 

The  next  day,  bravely  attacking  the  Persian  host,  Leonidas  and 
his  faithful  guards  fought  with  desperate  valor;  but  being  sur- 
rounded at  last,  they  were  overwhelmed  by  mere  weight  of  num- 
bers, and  were  slain  to  a  man.  With  them  also  perished  the 
seven  hundred  Thespians,  who  had  preferred  death  with  their 
companions  to  life  saved  by  deserting  them.  The  Thebans,  whom 
Leonidas,  according  to  Herodotus,  had  compelled  to  remain,  in 
the  midst  of  the  fight  went  over  in  a  body  to  the  Persians.  Their 
hves  were  spared  by  Xerxes,  but  their  bodies  were  branded  as  a 
sign  that  they  were  now  the  property  of  the  Great  King. 

The  body  of  Leonidas  was,  after  the  barbarous  custom  of  the 
Asiatics,  grossly  mutilated,  the  head  being  cut  off  and  the  trunk 
exposed  on  a  cross. 

Memorials  and  Incidents  of  the  Fight.  —  The  fight  at  Ther- 
mopylae echoed  through  all  the  after  centuries  of  Greek  history. 
The  Greeks  felt  that  all  Hellas  gained  great  glory  on  that  day 
when  Leonidas  and  his  companions  fell,  and  they  gave  them  a 
chief  place  among  their  national  heroes.  Memorial  pillars  marked 
for  coming  generations  the  sacred  spot,  while  praising  inscriptions 
and  epitaphs,  composed  by  the  lyric  poet  Simonides  of  Ceos, 
told  in  brief  phrases  the  story  of  the  battle.  Among  these  was 
one  inscription  in  honor  of  all  the  Peloponnesians  who  had  any 
part  in  the  fight,  and  which  with  perhaps  "■  pardonable  exaggera- 
tion "  told  how  "  here  four  thousand  men  from  the  Peloponnesus 
fought  against  three  hundred  myriads  "  ;  and  another  in  special 


188  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

memory  of  the  Spartans  who  had  fallen,  which,  commemorating 
at  once  Spartan  law  and  Spartan  valor,  read :  "  Stranger,  go 
tell  the  Lacedaemonians  that  we  lie  here  in  obedience  to  their 
commands  ! "  ^ 

The  story  of  Aristodemus,  one  of  the  two  men  who,  out  of  the 
three  hundred  Spartans,  escaped  death  in  the  battle,  is  worthy  of 
notice  for  the  reason  of  the  insight  it  gives  us  into  the  inner  life 
of  the  martial  community  on  the  Eurotas.  This  man  and  a  com- 
panion, named  Eurytus,  at  the  critical  hour  on  the  last  day 
chanced  to  be  away  from  the  Greek  camp,  on  account,  as  one 
story  runs,  of  some  trouble  of  the  eyes.  Learning  of  the  desperate 
situation  of  their  companions  in  the  pass  through  the  treachery 
of  Ephialtes,  Eurytus  bade  his  helot  buckle  his  armor  on  him, 
and  lead  him  to  where  the  fight  was  going  on;  and  there  he 
shared  death  with  his  companions  in  arms.  But  the  courage  of 
Aristodemus  failed  him,  and  he  held  himself  aloof  from  the  battle. 
Returning  afterwards  to  Sparta,  he  was  shunned  by  every  one  as 
a  coward,  and  was  made  to  feel  so  keenly  his  disgrace  that  the 
year  following  the  battle  of  Thermopylae,  in  the  great  fight  at 
Plataea,  he  recklessly  exposed  himself,  and  through  an  honorable 
death  atoned  for  his  former  fault. 

The  fate  of  the  other  man  who  of  the  three  hundred  sur- 
vived the  battle,  is  equally  illustrative  of  Spartan  sentiment.  This 
soldier,  Pantites  by  name,  seems  to  have  been  ab'sent  from  the 
battle  through  no  fault  of  his  own,  having  been  sent  out  on  some 
commission  by  Leonidas.  Nevertheless,  after  his  return  home, 
life  was  made  so  unendurable  to  him  that  he  went  and  hanged 
himself.^ 

The  Battle  of  Artemisium  (480  e.g.).  —  While  Leonidas  and 
his  men  were  so  gallantly  striving  to  hold  in  check  the  hordes  of 
Xerxes  at  the  Pass  of  Thermopylae,  the  fleet  of  the  Greek  allies 
now  at  Artemisium  was  endeavoring  with  equal  bravery  to  prevent 
the  immense  fleet  of  the  Persians  from  entering  the  Euboean  strait. 
The  Greek  fleet  collected  at  this  place  numbered  over  four  hun- 
1  Herod,  vii.  228.  2  Herod,  vii.  229,  232. 


THE  BATTLE    OE  ARTEMISIUM. 


189 


dred  ships,  of  which  Athens  had  furnished  two  hundred,  counting 
the  reserves  which  she  brought  up  after  the  first  day's  fight.^  A 
part  of  Athens'  ships  were  manned  by  her  faithful  aUies,  the  Pla- 
taeans,  who  had  no  navy  of  their  own.  The  number  of  men 
borne  by  the  fleet  could  not  have  been  far  from  sixty  thousand,  as 
each  vessel  must  have  carried  on  the  average  two  hundred  men. 
Notwithstanding  that  Sparta  had  furnished  only  ten  ships,  still  the 
chief  command  of  the  fleet  was  held  by  the  Spartan  Eurybiades, 
since  the  allies  had  refused  to  serve  under  an  Athenian  com- 
mander.    This  circumstance  shows  how  jealous  the  smaller  mari- 


PMtilnty  <t  Carmichatl,  Engr' »,  Botion 

time  states  were  of  the  recently  grown  naval  power  of  Athens,  and 
at  the  same  time  illustrates  how  universally  Sparta  was  regarded 
as  the  natural  leader  of  all  the  Greeks. 

Although  the  great  losses  which  the  Persian  fleet  had  suffered  in 
the  recent  storm  (p.  183)  had  filled  the  Greeks  with  fresh  courage 
and  hope,  still  many  among  them  were  apprehensive  of  the  issue 
of  a  fight  with  the  still  immensely  superior  force  of  the  enemy, 
and  urged   a  second  retreat.      The  Euboeans,  fearing  that  these 

1  The  states  besides  Athens  represented  in  the  fleet,  and  the  number  of  ships 
furnished  by  each,  were  as  follows:  the  Corinthians,  40  ships;  the  Megarians,  20; 
the  ^ginetans,  18 ;  the  Sicyonians,  12 ;  the  Lacedsemonians,  10 ;  the  Epidaurians 
8 ;  the  Eretrians,  7 ;  the  Troeze  lians,  5 ;  the  Ceans,  4 ;  and  the  Locrians,  7. 
Herod,  viii.  i. 


190  THE  INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

counsels  of  timidity  would  be  acted  upon,  went  to  the  Spartan 
Eurybiades  and  begged  him  to  hold  the  fleet  at  the  head  of 
Euboea  for  at  least  a  few  days,  so  that  they  might  have  time  to 
carry  their  families  and  their  property  beyond  the  reach  of  the 
Persians. 

Failing  in  their  efforts  with  Eurybiades,  the  Euboeans  went  to 
Themistocles,  and,  by  means  of  a  bribe  of  thirty  talents,  secured 
from  him  a  pledge  that  the  Greeks  should  fight  at  Artemisium,  and 
not  abandon  Euboea  as  a  spoil  to  the  barbarians.  Themistocles 
was  able  to  make  good  his  promise  only  by  using  a  part  of  the 
money  he  had  received  from  the  Euboeans  in  bribing  Eurybiades, 
together  with  the  commander  of  the  Corinthian  ships.  He  thus 
brought  it  about  that  the  fleet  was  held  at  Artemisium,  and  battle 
there  offered  the  Persian  ships. 

The  commanders  of  the  Persian  fleet,  relying  upon  their  superi- 
ority in  number  of  ships,  thought  by  sending  a  squadron  around 
Euboea  into  the  Euripus  and  thus  blocking  the  retreat  of  the 
Greeks,  to  be  able  to  capture  the  entire  fleet.  Accordingly  two 
hundred  ships  were  dispatched  on  this  mission ;  but  while  upon 
the  passage  round  the  island,  they  were  all  driven  ashore  and 
wrecked  by  a  violent  storm.  Meanwhile  the  Greeks,  having  been 
informed  by  a  deserter  from  the  Persians  of  the  plans  of  the 
enemy  and  of  the  weakening  of  their  fleet  through  the  sending 
out  of  the  Euboean  squadron,  resolved  to  attack  them,  and  at 
least  test  their  fighting  qualities  and  their  skill  in  handhng  their 
boats.  The  engagement  thus  brought  on  was  interrupted  by  the 
darkness  of  night,  before  either  side  had  secured  a  decisive  victory. 

The  next  day  the  Greeks,  encouraged  by  reinforcements  from 
Athens,  and  by  the  news  of  the  destruction  of  the  Persian  ships 
on  the  Euboean  coast,  made  another  attack  upon  the  fleet  of  the 
barbarians,  but  with  indecisive  results,  as  upon  the  preceding  day. 

The  combat  on  the  third  day  was  begun  by  the  Persian  fleet, 
which,  advancing  in  the  form  of  a  crescent,  endeavored  to  sur- 
round the  Greeks.  Both  fleets  were  greatly  damaged  in  this  day's 
fight,  but  separated    as    on  previous  days  without  any  decided 


ATTEMPT    TO   PLUNDER    THE    TEMPLE   AT  DELPLLL.     191 

advantage  having  been  gained  by  either  side.  But  on  the  even- 
ing of  this  day  the  watcher  who  with  a  swift  ship  at  his  service 
had  been  stationed  near  Thermopylae  for  the  purpose  of  informing 
the  Greek  fleet  at  Artemisium  how  matters  might  be  going  in  the 
pass,  came  with  the  news  that  Leonidas  had  been  overpowered, 
and  that  the  pass  was  lost.  As  there  was  now  nothing  to  be 
gained  by  holding  the  water  passage  any  longer,  it  was  resolved 
to  withdraw  before  the  enemy,  and  retreat  down  the  channel. 

This  movement  was  executed  with  the  Corinthian  ships  in  the 
lead  and  the  Athenians  in  the  rear.  As  the  fleet  in  this  order 
moved  through  the  strait,  Themistocles  set  ashore  at  favorable 
spots  men  who,  following  his  directions,  cut  on  the  rocks  inscrip- 
tions which  he  hoped  would  be  seen  by  the  Greeks  serving  in  the 
Persian  fleet.  The  inscriptions  exhorted  these  Greeks  not  to  fight 
against  their  kinsmen ;  but  if  they  were  forced  to  do  so  through 
fear,  then  to  "  fight  backwardly."  Even  if  this  appeal  should  not 
lead  the  lonians  to  desert  from  the  Persian  fleet,  still  Themistocles 
hoped  that  the  inscriptions  would  at  least  make  Xerxes  uneasy 
and  suspicious  respecting  his  Greek  auxiliaries,  and  thus  keep  him 
from  using  them  in  future  fights.^ 

Having  passed  through  the  Euripus,  the  entire  Greek  armament 
rounded  Cape  Sunium,  and,  yielding  to  the  entreaties  of  the 
Athenians,  came  to  anchor  in  the  gulf  of  Salamis,  near  Athens, 
and  awaited  events. 

The  Persians  attempt  to  plunder  the  Temple  at  Delphi.  — 
Shortly  after  the  withdrawal  of  the  Greeks  from  Artemisium,  both 
the  fleet  and  the  army  of  Xerxes  moved  on  towards  Athens.  As 
the  Persian  army  marched  into  Phocis,  the  inhabitants  sought  safety 
either  in  the  surrounding  mountains  or  in  the  towns  of  the  Locrians 
on  the  gulf  of  Corinth.  Their  villages  and  temples,  thus  aban- 
doned, were  burned  by  the  barbarians,  who  were  guided  and 
incited  to  the  work  of  devastation  by  the  Thessalians,  hereditary 
enemies  of  the  Phocians. 

Upon   nearing  Delphi,  Xerxes    sent    a   strong   detachment    to 

1  Herod,  viii.  22. 


192  THE   INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

secure  the  treasures,  of  which  wonderful  accounts  had  been  given 
him,  stored  in  the  temple  of  Apollo  at  that  place,  while  he  him- 
self, with  the  main  body  of  his  army,  held  on  the  direct  course 
leading  into  Attica.  The  intelligence  of  the  approach  of  the 
barbarians  threw  the  guardians  of  the  shrine  into  a  fever  of 
excitement.  In  their  perplexity,  however,  how  best  to  secure  the 
sacred  treasures,  they  bethought  themselves  to  ask  the  oracle  what 
measures  they  should  adopt.  Apollo  replied  that  he  would  take 
care  of  his  own.  Thus  relieved  of  anxiety  in  regard  to  the  holy 
treasures,  the  Delphians  now  sought  safety  for  themselves  and 
their  families.  Sending  their  wives  and  children  across  the  Co- 
rinthian Gulf  into  the  Peloponnesus,  and  hiding  their  goods  in  a 
convenient  cave,  the  men,  for  the  most  part,  sought  refuge  for 
themselves  in  the  hills  back  of  Delphi.  The  prophet  of  Apollo, 
Aceratus  by  name,  and  sixty  others  were  the  only  persons  who 
remained  in  the  city. 

A  great  portent,  so  Herodotus  avers,  now  assured  those  who 
had  stayed  behind  that  Apollo  would  make  good  his  word.  A 
part  of  the  sacred  armor,  which  hung  in  the  deepest  recesses  of 
the  shrine,  was  removed  from  the  temple  without  hands,  and 
placed  on  the  ground  in  front  of  the  fane,  plainly  showing  that 
the  god  himself  was  going  forth  to  meet  the  coming  enemy. 
Still  greater  prodigies,  it  is  said,  followed  ;  for  as  the  barbarians 
neared  Delphi,  a  sudden  thunder-storm  burst  above  their  heads, 
while  huge  masses  of  rock,  detached  from  the  sides  of  Parnassus, 
rolled  down  upon  them,  ploughing  wide  gaps  through  their 
columns,  and  a  great  battle-shout  of  invisible  hosts  issued  from 
the  neighboring  temple  of  Athena.  Terrified  by  these  prodigies, 
the  barbarians  turned  and  fled,  while  the  Delphians,  emboldened 
by  these  signs  that  Apollo  was  fighting  for  them,  ran  down  from 
the  hills  where  they  had  been  hiding,  and,  pursuing  the  fleeing 
barbarians,  slew  immense  numbers  of  them.  Invisible  powers 
aided  them  in  the  pursuit  and  slaughter,  for  those  of  the  Persians 
who  escaped  afterwards  related  that  they  were  followed  by  two 
giant  warriors,  who  wasted   their  ranks  as  they  fled.     The  Del- 


ATTEMPT   TO  PLUNDER    THE    TEMPLE  AT  DELPHI.     193 

phians  maintained  that  these  ghostly  warriors  were  heroes  of  the 
foretime,  whose  shrines  were  held  in  reverence  in  that  place.^ 

Such  is  the  story  of  the  defense  of  the  Delphian  temple  which 
was  afterward  circulated  among  the  Greeks,  and  apparently 
received  by  them  in  general  as  a  true  account  of  what  had  really 
happened.^ 

References. —  Plutarch,  Z?/e?  of  Themistocles.  Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  vii. 
131-239;  ib.  viii.  1-40.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  283-315. 
Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp.  144-201 ;  (twelve  volume 
ed.),  vol.  V.  pp.  45-104.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  139-175. 
Cox,  Lives  of  Greek  States?nen  :  "  Gelon." 

1  Herod,  viii.  36-39. 

2  It  seems  probable  that  a  timely  thunder-storm  created  a  panic  in  the  army  of 
the  barbarians,  and  aided  in  saving  the  temple  from  pillage.  The  displacement 
of  the  armor,  the  rolling  of  the  stones  down  the  mountain,  the  war-shout  from  the 
temple,  and  the  mysterious  warriors  may  all  very  well  have  been  devices  of  the 
priests. 


194  THE  INVASION'  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

THE    INVASION    OF    GREECE    BY    XERXES:     SALAMIS. 

(480  B.C.) 

The  Abandonment  of  Athens  by  the  Athenians.  —  While  the 
expedition  against  Delphi  was  meeting  with  its  strange  discomfit- 
ure, as  related  in  the  last  chapter,  the  main  body  of  the  Persians 
was  moving  on  through  Boeotia.  Here  they  were  joined  by  all 
the  Boeotians,^  who  had  already  admitted  Macedonian  garrisons 
into  their  towns,  and  in  every  way  shown  their  readiness  to  be 
of  service  to  the  Persians. 

The  Athenians  had  hoped  that  the  allies  would  make  a  stand 
against  the  invaders  in  Boeotia,  but  this  hope  was  now  dissipated  ; 
for  the  Peloponnesians,  thinking  only  of  their  own  homes,  had 
begun  to  build  a  wall  across  the  isthmus  at  Corinth,  working  day 
and  night  upon  the*barricade  under  the  promptings  of  an  almost 
insane  fear.     Attica  was  to  be  abandoned  to  the  barbarians. 

The  Athenians  were  divided  in  opinion  as  to  what  course  they 
should  pursue.  They  had  already,  anticipating  the  crisis,  sent  to 
Delphi  for  counsel.^  Their  messengers  had  received  at  first  a  very 
disheartening  oracle,  which  declared  that  Athens  must  needs 
become  the  prey  of  the  barbarians.  Unwilling  to  be  the  bearers 
of  the  hopeless  message  to  their  countrymen,  they  took  olive- 

1  Excepting  the  Plataeans,  the  Thespians,  and  the  inhabitants  of  Haliartus.  The 
Plataeans  abandoned  their  little  city  and  cast  in  their  lot  with  their  good  friends,  the 
Athenians.  The  Thespians  found  an  asylum  at  Corinth.  The  people  of  Haliartus 
seem  to  have  perished  with  their  city. 

2  There  is  some  uncertainty  as  to  just  when  the  Athenians  sought  advice  at 
Delphi.    Probably  it  was  about  the  time  that  Xerxes  entered  Thessaly. 


THE   ABANDONMENT   OF  ATHENS.  195 

branches  in  their  hands,  and  thus  as  supphants  presented  them- 
selves before  the  god,  praying  him  to  give  them  a  more  encouraging 
answer.  In  response  to  this  prayer,  Apollo  gave  them  this 
message  :  — 

"  Pallas  has  not  been  able  to  soften  the  lord  of  Olympus, 
Though  she  has  often  prayed  him,  and  urged  him  with  excellent  counsel. 
Yet  once  more  I  address  thee  in  words  than  adamant  firmer. 
"When  the  foe  shall  have  taken  whatever  the  limit  of  Cecrops 
Holds  within  it,  and  all  which  divine  Cithseron  shelters, 
Then  far-seeing  Jove  grants  this  to  the  prayers  of  Athene; 
Safe  shall  the  wooden  wall  continue  for  thee  and  thy  children. 
Wait  not  the  tramp  of  the  horse,  nor  the  footman  mightily  moving 
Over  the  land,  but  turn  your  back  to  the  foe,  and  retire  ye. 
Yet  shall  a  day  arrive  when  ye  shall  meet  him  in  battle. 
Holy  Salamis,  thou  shalt  destroy  the  offspring  of  women. 
When  men  scatter  the  seed,  or  when  they  gather  the  harvest."  ^ 

With  this  answer  the  messengers  returned  to  Athens.  Straight- 
way there  arose  a  great  discussion  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  oracle. 
There  were  various  opinions  as  to  what  was  meant  by  the  phrase 
"  wooden  wall."  Some  thought  that  thereby  the  priestess  directed 
them  to  seek  refuge  in  the  forests  on  the  mountains  ;  others  believed 
the  oracle  meant  that  they  should  defend  the  Acropolis,  as  in  ancient 
times  the  height  had  been  surrounded  by  a  wooden  palisade.  Still 
others  thought  it  clear  that  the  oracle  commanded  them  to  rely 
upon  their  ships  —  plainly  these  were  the  "  wooden  wall." 

But  if  the  oracle  pointed  to  the  fleet,  then  what  was  the  mean- 
ing of  the  line,  "  Holy  Salamis,  thou  shalt  destroy  the  offspring 
of  women  "  ?  These  words  seemed  to  presage  disaster.  But 
Themistocles,  who  favored  that  interpretation  of  the  phrase 
*'  wooden  wall  "  which  made  it  to  mean  the  Athenian  navy,  called 
attention  to  the  significance  of  the  phrase  "  Holy  Salamis,"  saying 
that  if  the  god  had  meant  to  foretell  a  calamity  to  the  Athenians, 
the  possessors  of  the  island,  this  expression  would  not  have  been 
used,  but  rather  that  of  "  Luckless  Salamis."     Plainly  it  all  meant 

1  Herod,  vii.  141  (Rawlinson's  Trans.). 


196  THE   INVASION  OF  GREECE   BY  XERXES. 

that  the  barbarians  and  not  the  Athenians  were  there  to  meet  with 
a  great  calamity.^ 

The  interpretation  given  the  oracle  by  Theniistocles  was  accepted 
by  the  Athenians,  and  helped  to  shape  their  course  of  action  when 
the  critical  moment  arrived.  First,  the  aged  men,  the  women,  the 
children,  and  the  slaves  were  carried  to  different  places  of  safety, 
—  to  ^gina,  Salamis,  and  Troezen.  The  last-named  city,  which 
all  through  this  fight  for  Greek  independence  showed  a  noble, 
self-sacrificing  spirit,  received  the  greater  part  of  the  homeless 
fugitives  and  cared  for  them  as  for  her  own,  even  paying  the 
school  expenses  of  the  children,  and  permitting  them  to  pick  fruit 
wherever  they  might  find  it.^  The  flight  was  hurried,  for  a  prodigy 
gave  warning  that  there  was  no  time  to  lose.  The  guardian  ser- 
pent that  the  Athenians  believed  lived  on  the  Acropolis  had 
abandoned  the  place.  This  was  revealed  by  the  fact,  announced 
by  the  priestess,  that  the  food  regularly  set  out  for  it,  and  hitherto 
as  regularly  consumed,  had  been  untouched.  As  the  withdrawal 
of  the  gods  from  a  city  was  regarded  by  the  ancients  as  a  sure 
presage  of  its  approaching  destruction,  the  Athenians  now  hastened 
their  departure  from  their  doomed  homes.'^ 

With  their  wives  and  children  conveyed  to  places  of  safety,  all 
the  fighting  men  of  Athens  crowded  into  the  ships  which  had  been 
engaged  in  the  work  of  removal,  and  joined  the  fleet  of  the  allies 
that  lay  at  anchor  off  Salamis.  All  the  villages  and  homesteads 
of  Attica,  together  with  the  capital,  were  thus  abandoned  to  the 
barbarians. 

The  Burning  of  Athens  by  the  Persians.  —  The  Athenians  had 
barely  effected  the  removal  of  their  families,  before  there  came 

1  Herod,  vii,  142,  143.  It  is  probable  that  both  these  oracles  had  been  secured 
from  Delphi  through  the  influence  of  Themistocles.  By  the  first  threatening  mes- 
sage, he  probably  aimed  to  bring  the  Athenians  to  the  resolve  to  abandon  Attica ; 
and,  by  the  second,  to  inspire  them  with  courage  to  offer  the  enemy  battle  at 
Salamis. 

2  Plutarch,  Themistocles,  10. 

3  The  circulation  of  this  report  was  probably  another  device  of  Themistocles 
to  bring  the  people  to  a  prompt  acquiescence  in  his  proposal  that  they  should 
abandon  their  homes. 


THE    GREEK   GENERALS  IN  COUNCIL.  197 

to  them  at  Salamis  a  messenger  with  the  news  that  the  barbarians, 
having  on  their  way  through  Boeotia  burned  the  deserted  towns 
of  Thespiae  and  Plataea,  which  the  Thebans  had  pointed  out  to 
Xerxes  as  places  whose  inhabitants  were  hostile  to  him,  were  now 
in  Attica  ravaging  the  fields  far  and  wide. 

The  news  proved  true.  After  a  march  of  four  months  from 
the  crossing  of  the  Hellespontine  bridges,  the  avenging  Xerxes 
stood  with  his  army  in  front  of  the  city  whose  inhabitants  had 
defied  and  insulted  his  father  by  giving  aid  to  his  rebel  subjects,  and 
by  casting  his  heralds  into  a  pit.  The  city  was  wholly  deserted, 
saving  the  presence  of  a  few  people  on  the  Acropolis.  These  had 
taken  refuge  there,  and  barricaded  the  height  with  stakes  and 
boards,  being  convinced  that  they  had  the  right  meaning  of 
the  oracle  in  interpreting  the  "wooden  wall"  as  pointing  to  the 
AcropoHs  and  not  to  the  fleet.  Being  besieged  here  by  the  Per- 
sians, they  made  an  obstinate  defense  of  the  place.  But  they  were 
fighting  against  fate.  The  oracle  that  had  devoted  all  Attica  as 
a  spoil  to  the  barbarians  must  needs  be  fulfilled.  The  citadel 
soon  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  barbarians,  and  all  of  its  defenders 
perished.  The  temple  of  Athena  and  the  other  buildings  on  the 
height  were  given  to  the  flames.  Sardis  was  avenged.  The  joy 
in  distant  Susa,  when  a  messenger  from  Xerxes  arrived  there  with 
the  news,  was  unbounded.' 

The  Greek  Generals  in  Council  at  Salamis. — While  the  Persians 
were  thus  overrunning  Attica  and  sacking  and  burning  Athens, 
the  Greek  fleet,  in  which  the  hopes  of  the  patriot  party  were  now 
centred,  lay  moored,  as  we  have  just  noticed,  in  front  of  the 
island  of  Salamis.  Here  the  ships  that  had  fought  at  Artemisium 
had  been  reinforced  by  fifty-four  other  vessels  from  various  cities 
of  the  mainland  and  of  the  islands,  so  that  the  whole  number  of 
ships  in  the  aUied  armament  amounted  to  near  four  hundred,  the 
greater  part  of  which  were  triremes. 

The  chief  command  of  the  fleet  was  still  held  by  the  Spartan 
Eurybiades,  who,  when  the  ships  were  mustered,  called  a  council 
1  Herod,  viii.  99. 


198  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

of  the  leaders  to  decide  respecting  the  place  where  battle  should 
be  offered  the  barbarians.  Opinions  were,  as  usual,  divided. 
Some  were  for  fighting  where  they  were ;  but  others,  particularly 
the  Peloponnesians,  were  in  favor  of  a  battle  at  the  Isthmus,  so 
that  in  case  of  defeat  they  should  be  able  to  get  home  by  land, 
whereas,  if  defeated  at  Salamis,  they  would  be  imprisoned  on  the 
island.^ 

The  greater  number  voted  in  favor  of  the  proposal  to  fight  at 
the  Isthmus.  Themistocles,  greatly  distressed  over  this  decision, 
returned  to  his  vessel.  Here  he  was  met  by  his  teacher  and 
friend  Mnesiphilus,  a  patriot  of  clear  counsel,  who,  upon  hearing 
from  Themistocles  the  resolve  of  the  leaders,  advised  him  to 
return  straightway  to  Eurybiades,  and  representing  to  him  that 
if  once  the  ships  left  Salamis  no  power  on  earth  could  hold  them 
together  and  prevent  their  scattering  to  their  homes,  endeavor  to 
prevail  upon  him  to  use  all  his  influence  to  hold  the  fleet  where  it 
then  lay,  and  there  fight  in  defense  of  their  common  fatherland. 

Themistocles,  acting  upon  the  advice  of  Mnesiphilus,  went  to 
the  ship  of  Eurybiades,  and  besought  an  interview.  This  being 
granted,  Themistocles  rehearsed  all  the  arguments  against  the 
Isthmian  project  and  those  in  favor  of  fighting  the  Persians  at 
Salamis,  and  in  so  far  won  Eurybiades  to  his  way  of  thinking  that 
he  agreed  to  call  the  captains  to  a  second  council  for  a  recon- 
sideration of  the  recent  vote. 

When  the  captains  were  again  assembled,  Themistocles,  ad- 
dressing his  words  to  Eurybiades,  and  avoiding  the  use  of  all 
arguments  that  might  give  offense  to  any  of  the  allies,  rehearsed 
at  length  the  advantages  of  Salamis  over  the  Isthmus  for  a  fight 
with  the  enemy.  The  substance  of  these  was  that  at  Salamis  the 
Greeks  would  fight  in  a  narrow  channel,  and  thus  be  at  no  disad- 
vantage on  account  of  the  small  number  of  their  ships  as  compared 
with  that  of  the  barbarians  ;  and  that  a  victory  gained  at  the  island 
would  contribute  just  as  much  to  the  defense  of  the  Peloponnesus 
as   one  gained  at  the  Isthmus,  and  besides  would  save  Salamis, 

1  Herod,  viii.  48, 


THE    GREEKS  ARE   ENCOURAGED.  199 

Megara,  and  ^gina,  which  the  other  course  would  at  the  outset 
abandon  to  the  enemy.  Nor  did  he  neglect  to  remind  the  assem- 
bly of  the  oracle  that  had  promised  them  a  victory  at  Salamis. 

At  this  point  a  certain  Corinthian  captain,  named  Adeimantus, 
bade  Themistocles  to  hold  his  peace,  since,  seeing  "  he  was  a  man 
without  a  city,"  he  had  no  right  to  a  voice  in  the  meeting.  The 
taunt  made  reference  to  the  fact  that  Athens  was  in  the  posses- 
sion of  Xerxes.  Themistocles'  grand  reply  was,  in  substance,  that 
Athens  was  there  in  her  ships. 

What  would  have  been  the  issue  of  the  debate  which  was  stir- 
ring up  so  much  bad  feeling  it  is  difficult  to  say,  had  not  Themis- 
tocles at  this  stage  of  the  discussion  thrown  out  a  threat  which 
apparently  outweighed  all  his  arguments.  He  declared  that,  if 
his  advice  was  not  followed,  the  Athenians  would  withdraw  from 
the  fleet,  take  on  board  their  wives  and  children  and  sail  away  to 
Italy,  and  there  found  a  new  Athens.  This  threat  caused  Eury- 
biades  to  give  his  voice  for  the  course  Themistocles  urged,  and  it 
was  decided  to  offer  the  enemy  batde  in  front  of  Salamis.^ 

The  Greeks  are  encouraged  by  a  Favorable  Omen.  —  While 
preparations  for  the  fight  were  being  made,  an  earthquake  shook 
the  island.  The  pious  Greeks,  accepting  the  omen,  invoked  the 
tutelary  heroes  of  the  place,  Telamon  and  Ajax,  and  sent  a  ship 
to  ^gina  to  bring  to  Salamis  the  images  of  other  heroes  that  were 
there,  —  images  that  the  Greeks  held  in  great  veneration. 

Besides  the  earthquake  there  was  another  omen,  which  was  not 
observed  by  the  Greeks  at  Salamis,  but  which  was  noticed  by  some 
of  the  Greek  exiles  who  were  with  Xerxes  in  Attica,  and  was 
afterwards  reported  by  them.  These  men  happened  to  be  near 
Eleusis,  where  the  Eleusinian  festival  in  honor  of  Demeter  and 
Persephone  was  wont  to  be  celebrated  by  the  Athenians,  and  from 
there  saw  a  great  cloud  of  dust  arising  from  the  road  leading 
from  Athens  to  Eleusis,  such  as  a  great  procession  might  stir  up, 
and  at  the  same  time  heard  unearthly  voices  chanting  the  Bacchic 
song.     The  dust-cloud  gradually  rose    and   drifted  away  in  the 

1  For  the  whole  debate,  Herod,  vii.  56-63. 


200  THE  INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

direction  of  Salamis.  This  was  taken  to  presage  that  the  battle 
would  be  fought  there,  and  that  the  gods  of  the  Athenian  land 
would  help  the  Athenians  and  their  allies.^ 

The  Stratagem  of  Themistocles.  —  Not  all  the  Greeks  at  Sala- 
mis had  heartily  concurred  in  the  resolve  to  await  the  Persians 
there.  Those  from  the  Peloponnesus  were  especially  dissatisfied 
with  the  decision  that  held  them  at  the  island,  as  this  seemed  to 
them  to  serve  simply  the  interests  of  the  Athenians,  and  it  began 
to  look  as  though  the  fleet  would,  in  spite  of  everything  that 
could  be  done  or  urged,  break  up  and  scatter.  A  third  council 
was  called,  and  another  debate  took  place  between  those  in  favor 
of  fighting  at  the  Isthmus  and  those  who  insisted  upon  their  risk- 
ing a  battle  at  Salamis.  Themistocles,  seeing  that  those  opposed 
to  his  plan  would  carry  the  meeting,  resorted  to  the  following 
stratagem.  He  withdrew  himself  from  the  council  without  being 
observed,  and  sent  hurriedly  a  trusty  slave  to  the  Persian  fleet  — 
which,  having  advanced  from  Northern  Euboea,  was  now  lying  at 
anchor  near  the  Athenian  port  of  Phalerum  —  with  instructions  to 
say  to  the  Persian  commanders  that  his  master  was  at  heart  a 
friend  of  the  Persians,  and  was  hoping  for  their  success ;  and  in 
order  to  render  them  a  service  had  now  sent  to  inform  them  that 
the  opportune  moment  for  attacking  the  Greeks  had  come,  as 
they  were  quarrelHng  among  themselves  and  stricken  with  panic, 
and  thus  in  no  condition  to  make  a  stout  fight. 

The  Persians  were  deceived.  They  resolved  to  act  at  once  upon 
the  advice  given  by  Themistocles.  During  the  night  on  which 
the  misleading  message  was  received,  the  Persian  ships,  under 
cover  of  the  darkness,  were  so  stationed  as  to  block  up  both  ends 
of  the  channel  between  Salamis  and  the  mainland,^  and  thus  to  cut 
off  from  the  Greeks  who  lay  on  the  Salaminian  shore  all  chance  of 

1  Herod,  vii.  64,  65. 

2  Professor  Goodwin  has  shown  conclusively  that  the  Persian  ships  cut  off  the 
retreat  of  the  Greeks,  not  by  slipping  into  the  channel  between  the  Attic  shore  and 
Psyttaleia  and  surrounding  their  fleet  as  it  lay  at  the  town  of  Salamis,  as  is  assumed 
by  Grote,  Cox,  Curtius,  and  others,  but  by  blocking  the  outlet  of  the  Salaminian 


ARISTEIDES   COMES    TO    THE   ELEET.  201 

escape.  At  the  same  time  a  detachment  of  Persians  was  landed 
on  a  little  island,  called  Psyttaleia,  situated  in  the  midst  of  this 
water  passage,  as  it  was  thought  that  the  fight  would  be  hottest  at 
this  point  in  the  channel,  in  which  case  these  troops  were  to  kill 
the  Greeks  and  rescue  the  Persians  who  might  be  cast  ashore  here.^ 

Aristeides  comes  to  the  Fleet.  —  While  the  Persians  were  thus 
quietly  and  secretly  enclosing  the  Greek  fleet,  the  Greek  captains 
were  carrying  on  their  debate  into  the  night,  wholly  unconscious  of 
the  movements  of  the  enemy.  The  contention  was  at  its  height 
when  Aristeides,  who  had  taken  advantage  of  a  recent  decree  of 
the  Athenians  inviting  exiles  whose  banishment  had  been  simply 
for  a  limited  term  to  return  and  aid  in  the  defense  of  Athens 
against  the  barbarians,  arrived  at  Salamis  from  ^gina.  Having 
full  knowledge  of  the  situation  of  things  on  the  island,  he  went 
directly  to  the  place  where  the  captains  were  holding  their  meet- 
ing, and  caused  Themistocles  to  be  told  that  Aristeides  was 
outside  and  wished  to  speak  with  him.  As  Themistocles  appeared, 
Aristeides,  extending  to  his  rival  his  hand,  said  :  "  Let  our  rivalry 
ever  be,  and  particularly  at  such  a  moment  as  this,  a  generous 
contention  as  to  which  shall  confer  the  greatest  benefit  upon  our 
country."  He  then  informed  Themistocles  that  they  were  sur- 
rounded by  the  Persians,  and  told  him  to  tell  the  captains  that  the 
time  for  debate  was  past. 

Themistocles,  greatly  pleased  with  this  news,  made  known  to 
Aristeides  what  he  had  done,  in  order  to  force  the  Greeks  to  fight 
where  they  were,  and  then  asked  him  to  go  within  and  repeat  to 
the  captains  what  he  had  just  told  him.  Aristeides  entered  the 
meeting,  and  told  the  Greek  commanders  what  he  had  already 
made  known  to  Themistocles,  adding  that  he  had  himself  only 
with  the  greatest  difiiculty  succeeded  in  passing  through  the 
enemy's  lines  on  his  way  from  ^gina. 

strait,  probably  just  south  of  Psyttaleia,  and  also  the  entrance  of  the  channel  on 
the  Megarian  side.     See  his  paper  entitled,  "  The  Battle  of  Salamis,"  in  Papers  of 
the  American  School  of  Classical  Studies  at  Athens,  vol.  i.,  1882-83. 
1  Herod,  viii.  74-76. 


202 


THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE    BY  XERXES. 


THE  BATTLE    OF  SALAMIS.  203 

This  startling  intelligence  was  received  with  incredulity  by 
many ;  but  every  doubt  was  soon  removed  from  all  minds  by  the 
arrival  with  the  same  news  of  a  Grecian  trireme  which  had 
deserted  from  the  Persian  fleet.  Debate  now  gave  place  to  active 
preparations  for  battle.^ 

The  Battle  of  Salamis  (480  b.  c).  —  The  morning  following 
this  anxious  night,  the  Greeks,  after  listening  to  encouraging 
speeches  from  their  commanders,  manned  their  ships,  pushed  a 
little  way  from  the  shore,  and  arranged  themselves  in  battle  order, 
the  Athenian  ships  holding  one  end  of  the  hne  and  the  Lacedae- 
monian the  other. 

Straightway  the  Persian  fleet  bore  dow,n  upon  the  Grecian  ships, 
and  caused  them  to  back  towards  the  shore.  At  this  instant  a 
trireme,  darting  forward  out  of  the  Greek  line,  boldly  charged 
the  enemy,  and  immediately  the  fight  became  general.  The 
Persian  ships,  Herodotus  asserts,  fought  better  here  than  they  did 
at  Artemisium,  and  for  the  reason,  he  thinks,  that  at  Salamis  they 
were  fighting  under  the  eye  of  Xerxes  himself;  for  the  king  had 
caused  a  throne  to  be  placed  on  the  Attic  shore,  whence  he 
could  overlook  the  channel  where  the  fight  was  going  on.  The 
Greeks  serving  in  the  Persian  fleet  also  fought,  for  the  most  part, 
in  a  manner  worthy  of  a  better  cause,  only  a  few  seemingly 
following  the  exhortation  of  Themistocles  to  "  fight  backwardly  " 
(p.  191). 

Artemisia  fought  with  the  bravery  of  a  man,  and  won  for  herself 
new  distinction  in  the  eyes  of  all.  At  a  moment  of  panic  and 
confusion  in  the  lines  of  the  barbarians,  while  retreating  with  her 
galley,  she  either  accidentally  or  purposely  rammed  one  of  the 
Persian  ships,  which  happened  to  be  in  her  way,  and  sunk  it. 
The  king's  attention  was  attracted  to  the  affair  ;  but  he,  with  those 
around  him,  supposed  that  the  ship  which  Artemisia  had  destroyed 
belonged  to  the  Greeks,  and,  greatly  pleased  with  the  splendid 
service  that  the  queen  was  rendering  him,  said  to  those  standing 
by,  "  My  men  have  behaved  like  women,  and  my  women  like  men." 

i  Herod,  viii.  79-82. 


204  THE  INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

The  flight  of  Artemisia  was  but  an  incident  of  a  general  retreat 
of  the  Persian  fleet  before  the  now  victorious  Greeks.  The  very 
multitude  of  the  ships  of  the  barbarians  became  a  source  of  dis- 
aster to  them.  The  galleys  pushing  back  in  retreat  from  the  front 
were  intercepted  by  those  crowding  up  from  behind,  until  all  were 
jammed  together  in  a  helpless  mass,  and  many  were  wrecked. 
Meanwhile  the  Athenian  triremes  on  the  one  side,  and  those  of  the 
^^ginetans  on  the  other,  were  destroying  such  of  the  enemy's  ships 
as  sought  to  escape.  About  two  hundred  of  the  Persian  ships 
were  destroyed,  the  wreckage  being  cast  by  tide  and  wind  on  the 
shores  of  Salamis  and  Attica.  The  Greeks  lost  forty  ships.  The 
surviving  vessels  of  the.  shattered  barbarian  fleet  gathered  at 
Phalerum,  under  shelter  of  the  land  forces. 

Prominent  among  those  whose  deeds  of  personal  address  and 
bravery  had  contributed  largely  to  the  completeness  of  the  great 
victory,  was  Aristeides ;  who,  when  the  enemy  began  to  retreat, 
crossed  with  some  Athenians  from  Salamis  to  the  islet  of  Psyt- 
taleia,  mentioned  above,  and  slew  all  the  Persian  troops  that  had 
been  landed  there  before  the  beginning  of  the  fight.  This  detach- 
ment, according  to  y3£schylus,  embraced  the  very  flower  of  the 
Persian  army,  and  its  destruction  caused  Xerxes  the  greatest 
alarm  and  grief. ^ 

Xerxes  resolves  to  retreat.  —  Immediately  after  the  battle 
Xerxes  dispatched  a  messenger  to  Susa  with  tidings  of  the  disaster 
that  had  befallen  his  fleet.  The  historian  Herodotus  and  the 
dramatist  ^schylus  both  paint  in  vivid  colors  the  dismay  that  the 
doleful  intelligence  produced  among  the  Persians  left  behind,  who 
had  but  a  few  days  earlier  received  from  Xerxes  a  message  telling 
of  the  burning  of  Athens  and  the  prosperous  running  of  his  affairs. 

The  battle  of  Salamis  marks  a  turning-point  in  the  history  of 
the  great  invasion.  The  decisiveness  of  the  blow  caused  Xerxes 
to  lose  faith  in  his  undertaking,  and  he  was  even  filled  with  appre- 
hension lest  the  Greeks  should  sail  away  to  the  Hellespont  and 
destroy  the  bridges  there,  thus  cutting  off"  all  means  of  retreat,  and 

1  For  details  of  the  fight,  Herod,  viii.  83-95 ;  and  ^schylus,  The  Persians. 


THE    GREEKS  PURSUE    THE  PERSIAN  FLEET.         205 

endangering  his  own  personal  safety.  He  therefore  resolved  to 
hasten  back  to  Asia  before  the  enemy  should  have  time  to  execute 
what  he  feared  they  had  in  mind.  But  as  it  was  necessary  that 
the  Greeks  should  be  kept  in  ignorance  of  his  intentions,  he  set 
his  army  at  work  building  a  causeway  from  the  Attic  shore  to 
Salamis,  and  started  other  works  as  though  he  were  going  to  stay 
in  Greece  and  vigorously  push  the  war. 

Mardonius,  however,  was  well  aware  of  the  real  intentions  of 
Xerxes,  and  encouraged  him  to  carry  them  into  execution.  But  he 
exhorted  the  king  to  leave  him  behind  with  three  hundred  thousand 
of  the  best  troops,  and  with  this  force  he  promised  to  retrieve  the 
misfortune  at  Salamis  and  conquer  the  whole  of  Greece.  He  did 
not  think  they  should  be  wholly  disheartened  because,  through  the 
poor  fighting  qualities  of  the  diverse  nations  making  up  the  sea 
forces,  they  had  suffered  a  defeat  on  the  water;  the  Greeks, 
though  good  sailors,  were  of  little  account  on  land. 

The  advice  of  Mardonius  fell  in  with  the  feelings  of  the  king, 
and  preparations  for  the  retreat  were  begun.  Xerxes  gave  orders 
to  the  fleet  at  Phalerum  to  sail  at  once  with  all  haste  to  the  Helles- 
pont, for  the  purpose  of  protecting  the  bridges  ;  and  then  he  him- 
self with  the  land  forces  began  to  retrace  through  Attica  and  Boeotia 
the  blackened  trail  which  marked  the  route  by  which  his  devastat- 
ing army  had  so  recently  advanced.^ 

The  Greeks  pursue  the  Persian  Fleet.  —  The  Greeks  had 
been  completely  deceived  as  to  the  plans  of  the  Persians.  They 
were  busy  getting  their  ships  ready  for  another  attack,  when  intel- 
ligence was  brought  to  them  that  the  enemy's  fleet  had  secretly 
withdrawn  from  Phalerum  and  was  on  its  way  towards  the  Helles- 
pont. Straightway  they  set  out  in  pursuit,  following  the  retreating 
enemy  as  far  as  Andros,  without  catching  a  ghmpse  of  a  barbarian 
ship. 

At  this  island  the  Greeks  held  a  council,  at  which  the  question 
was  whether  they  should  go  on  to  the  Hellespont  and  break  down 
the  bridges,  or  return  home.  Themistocles  was  in  favor  of  con- 
1  Herod,  viii,  97-103,  107. 


206  THE  INVASION  OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

tinning  the  pursuit  and  destroying  the  bridges.  He  was  opposed 
by  the  Spartan  Eurybiades,  who  maintained  that  for  the  Greeks  to 
thus  shut  up  Xerxes'  army  in  Europe  would  be  the  very  worst 
thing  they  could  possibly  do,  since  the  barbarians,  having  no  alter- 
native but  to  fight,  would  fight  desperately  and  conquer  the  whole 
of  the  continent.  He  advised  that  the  retreat  of  the  barbarians 
out  of  Europe  should  rather  be  made  easy.  After  they  were  all 
well  out  of  Greece  and  in  Asia,  then  the  Greeks  might  attack  them 
there. 

Eurybiades  carried  with  him  all  the  other  Peloponnesian  mem- 
bers of  the  council.  Seeing  that  his  first  advice  found  little  or  no 
favor  save  among  the  Athenians,  Themistocles  now  turned  com- 
pletely about  and  made  a  strong  speech  on  the  Hnes  that  had  been 
drawn  by  Eurybiades.  It  was  wise,  he  said,  never  to  press  a  con- 
quered enemy  too  hard,  as  despair  might  nerve  them  to  renewed 
efforts  that  would  bring  them  victory.^ 

It  was  maintained  by  the  enemies  of  Themistocles,  when  later 
events  revealed  to  the  Athenians  the  real  character  of  the  man, 
that  he  said  these  things  at  this  time  in  order  to  place  Xerxes 
under  obligation  to  him,  thinking  that  some  time  or  other  he 
might  need  a  friend  in  Persia. 

The  Greeks  collect  Fines  from  the  Medizing  Islanders. — 
The  pursuit  having  been  relinquished,  the  Greeks,  under  the 
instigation  of  Themistocles,  proceeded  to  punish,  by  the  levying 
of  fines,  certain  cities  of  the  Cyclades  for  having  given  aid  to  the 
barbarians. 

The  first  demand  for  money  was  made  of  the  city  of  Andros. 
Tl\e  men  of  this  city  refused  to  pay.  Themistocles  told  them 
that  they  must,  as  he  had  in  his  ships  "  two  powerful  gods  — 
Persuasion  and  Necessity."  The  Andrians  responded  that  they 
had  what  for  this  emergency  were  two  mightier  gods  —  "  Poverty 
and  Helplessness."  The  Andrian  gods  prevailed  over  the  strong 
gods  of  the  Athenians,  and  Themistocles  got  no  money  from 
the  Andrians ;  although  he  is  said  to  have  secured  a  large  ran- 

1  Herod,  viii.  109. 


RETREAT   OF  XERXES    TO   SARDTS.  207 

som  from  the  Parians  and  other  islanders.  Herodotus  charges 
Themistocles  with  having  kept  some  of  this  money  and  turned  it 
to  his  own  use. 

The  Retreat  of  Xerxes  to  Sardis.  —  While  the  Greeks  were 
thus  employed  among  the  islands,  Xerxes  was  hastening  on  his 
retreat  up  through  Greece.  Arriving  in  Thessaly,  he  left  Mar- 
donius  here  with  three  hundred  thousand  picked  men,  many  of 
them  Persians  of  quality  and  wealth,  and  including  the  Ten 
Thousand  Immortals.  It  was  the  arrangement  that  this  force 
should  winter  in  Thessaly  and  Macedonia,  and  the  following 
spring  again  march  south  and  complete  the  conquest  of  Greece. 

With  the  remainder  of  his  army  Xerxes  continued  his  retreat 
toward  Asia,  being  escorted  by  sixty  thousand  of  the  select  troops 
of  Mardonius,  under  the  lead  of  Artabazus.  In  about  one-half  the 
time  that  had  been  consumed  in  the  advance  march,  Xerxes 
reached  the  Hellespont,  but  with  his  army  terribly  thinned  through 
famine,  thirst,  heat,  cold,  fatigue,  and  disease,  all  of  which  had 
pursued  and  distressed  the  fugitives  in  their  hurried  flight  through 
Macedonia  and  Thrace. 

The  Hellespontine  bridges  were  gone,  having  been  swept  away 
like  the  earlier  ones  by  a  storm  ;  so  Xerxes  and  the  troops  that 
remained  were  carried  across  the  channel  in  boats.^  From  the 
Hellespont  Xerxes  went  up  to  Sardis,  where  he  remained  for  a 
while,  seemingly  reluctant  to  return  to  his  capital  Susa,  from  which 
he  had  set  out  so  short  a  time  before  in  such  pride  and  state. 
Such  was  the  end  of  the  great  invasion,  so  far  as  it  was  under  the 
lead  of  the  king  himself 

The  Greeks  dedicate  the  First-fruits  of  Salamis  to  the  Gods 
and  allot  the  Prizes  of  Valor.  —  Upon  the  return  to  Salamis  of 
the  ships  that  had  been  sent  in  pursuit  of  the  barbarian  fleet,  the 
Greeks  first  attended  to  the  setting  aside  of  the  first-fruits  of  their 

1  There  afterwards  circulated  among  the  Greeks  a  highly  embellished  tale  of 
Xerxes' passage  from  Europe  to  Asia,  which  even  the  story-loving  Herodotus  him- 
self, though  he  repeats  it,  felt  constrained  to  confess  had  no  basis  whatever  in 
actual  fact.     See  his  history,  viii.  ii8. 


208  THE   INVASION   OF  GREECE  BY  XERXES. 

victory  as  a  gift  to  the  gods,  and  the  allotting  to  the  most  worthy 
of  the  prizes  of  valor.  As  it  was  a  naval  victory  that  the  gods  had 
helped  the  Greeks  to  win,  three  of  the  captured  galleys  were 
dedicated  to  them  in  their  several  temples  —  one  at  the  Isthmus 
to  Neptune,  the  ruler  of  the  waves  that  had  engulfed  such  multi- 
tudes of  the  barbarians ;  one  at  Sunium  to  Athena,  who  had  in- 
spired the  wise  counsel  of  the  Greeks ;  and  one  at  Salamis  to  the 
hero  Ajax,  who  had  helped  the  Greeks  at  the  island.  Also  rich 
gifts  were  sent  to  the  Delphian  Apollo,  to  whose  inspiring  counsels 
it  was  due  that  Salamis  should  henceforth  be  held  "  holy  "  by  the 
men  of  Hellas.  These  gifts  to  the  oracle,  consisting  of  bronze 
spoils  from  the  barbarians,  were  cast  into  a  statue  of  Apollo, 
eighteen  feet  in  height,  and  bearing  in  one  hand  the  usual  emblem 
of  a  naval  victory,  —  the  beak  of  a  ship.^ 

x\fter  they  had  thus  made  their  offerings  to  the  gods,  the  Greeks 
assembled  at  the  Isthmus,  in  order  to  award  the  prizes  for  zeal, 
valor,  and  merit  among  the  various  cities,  warriors,  and  command- 
ers. To  ^gina,  among  the  states,  was  given  the  first  prize,  and 
to  Athens  the  second,  though  surely  these  awards  should  have 
been  reversed ;  but  jealousy  of  Athens  prevented  the  allies  from 
rendering  her  the  meed  of  praise  which  was  richly  her  due  for  her 
services  and  sacrifices  in  the  common  cause.  To  an  ^ginetan 
soldier,  too,  was  also  allotted  the  first  prize  for  personal  valor,  and 
to  two  Athenians  the  second. 

When  it  came  to  adjudging  the  awards  of  merit  among  the  gen- 
erals, each  of  the  commanders,  it  is  said,  cast  his  ballot  for  himself 
for  the  first  prize,  and  the  majority  of  them  for  Themistocles  for 
the  second  prize.  The  result  was  that  no  awards  were  allotted. 
It  was,  however,  almost  universally  conceded  that  the  first  prize 
should  have  been  given  to  Themistocles  ;  and  the  Spartans,  proba- 
bly through  policy,  —  for  the  services  of  Themistocles  could  not 
yet  be  dispensed  with,  as  the  barbarian  army  was  still  in  Greece, 
—  invited  him  to  Sparta,  and  there  made  amends  to  him  for  his 
disappointment  by  according  to  him  honors  such  as  no  Greek 
1  Herod,  viii.  121. 


THE    GREEKS  DEDICATE    THE  FIRST-FRUITS.        209 

had  ever  before  received  at  their  hands.  They  gave  him  an  olive 
crown,  a  splendid  chariot,  a  large  sum  of  money,  and,  in  addition 
to  all,  when  he  set  out  on  his  return  to  Athens,  escorted  him  as 
far  as  Tegea,  in  Arcadia,  with  an  honor  guard  of  three  hundred 
Spartan  knights.^ 

References.  — ^schylus,  The  Persians.  An  historical  drama  which  cele- 
brates the  victory  of  Salamis.  Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  viii.  41-125.  Plu- 
tarch, Life  of  Aristeides.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  315-331- 
Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp.  202-241;  (twelve 
volume  ed.),  vol.  v.  pp.  104-147.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  175- 
205.  Church,  Stories  from  the  Greek  Tragedians,  ch.  entitled,  "The  Story  of 
the  Persians,  or  the  Battle  of  Salamis." 

1  Herod,  viii.  93, 124. 


210  THE    CAMPAIGN  OF  MA  RD  ONI  US. 


CHAPTER   XIV. 

THE  CAMPAIGN   OF  MARDONIUS:    PLAT^A  AND   MYCALE. 

(479  B.C.) 

Artabazus  in  Chalcidice  (479  b.c).  —  After  Artabazus  had 
seen  Xerxes  safely  across  the  Hellespont  (p.  207),  he  turned 
back,  and  with  his  large  escort  marched  towards  Thessaly.  Arriv- 
ing at  Chalcidice,  he  found  many  of  the  cities  of  that  region, 
encouraged  by  the  recent  misfortunes  of  the  Persians,  in  full 
revolt  against  the  Great  King.  Chief  among  the  places  which 
had  thus  cast  off  their  allegiance  was  Potidsea.  To  this  city,  as 
well  as  to  Olynthus,  which  he  suspected  of  the  intention  to  revolt, 
Artabazus  laid  regular  siege.  Olynthus  soon  falling  into  his  hands, 
all  the  inhabitants  were  taken  to  a  spot  outside  the  walls  and 
slain,  while  the  territory  of  the  city  was  given  to  the  Chalcidians. 
In  front  of  Potidaea,  however,  the  Persians  suffered  a  heavy  loss 
from  an  unusual  rise  and  overflow  of  the  sea,  and,  raising  the  siege, 
Artabazus  resumed  his  march  to  Thessaly,  where  the  greater  part 
of  the   Persian  forces  left  with  Mardonius  had  passed  the  winter. 

Mardonius  attempts  to  bribe  the  Athenians.  —  With  the  open- 
ing of  the  spring  of  479  B.C.,  Mardonius,  having  first  consulted  vari- 
ous Greek  oracles,  sent  an  embassy  to  Athens  for  the  purpose  of 
endeavoring  to  detach  the  Athenians  —  whom  he  recognized  as  the 
mainstay  of  the  naval  power  of  the  Greeks  —  from  the  Hellenic 
league  and  to  persuade  them  to  form  an  alliance  with  the  Persians. 
This  commission  was  entrusted  to  Alexander  of  Macedonia,  whose 
friendly  relations  with  the  Athenians,  Mardonius  conceived,  would 
help  to  secure  a  prosperous  issue  of  the  embassy. 


ARTABAZUS  IN  CIIALCIDICE.  211 

Arriving  at  Athens,  to  which  the  people  had  returned  after  the 
retreat  of  the  Persians,  Alexander  laid  before  the  Athenians  the 
overtures  that  he  bore  from  Mardonius.  These  were,  in  substance, 
that  Xerxes  would  wholly  overlook  the  past,  give  back  to  them 
their  territory  and  aid  them  in  winning  more  besides  if  they 
wished,  help  them  to  restore  their  temples,  and  leave  them  their 
freedom,  provided  only  they  would  form  an  alliance  with  him. 
To  these  words  which  Alexander  had  received  from  Mardonius, 
he  added  others  of  his  own,  as  a  friend  urging  the  Athenians  to 
accept  the  terms  offered  by  the  Persians  and  not  to  persist  in  a 
contention  which  would  be  sure  to  entail  on  them  infinite  suffering, 
and  which  in  the  end  could  have  but  one  issue  —  their  utter  ruin. 

At  this  stage  of  the  proceedings  at  Athens,  envoys  appeared 
from  Sparta;  for  when  the  Spartans  had  heard  that  Mardonius 
had  sent  an  embassy  to  the  Athenians  with  offers  of  friendship, 
they  were  alarmed  lest  the  Athenians  should  accept  the  terms 
offered,  and  had  straightway  dispatched  deputies  to  Athens  to 
expostulate  with  the  Athenians  against  their  entering  into  an  alli- 
ance with  the  barbarians.  The  Athenians  had  felt  certain  that  the 
Spartans,  as  soon  as  they  heard  of  the  Persian  embassy,  would  do 
just  this  thing,  and  consequently  had  lengthened  their  conferences 
with  Alexander  in  order  to  give  the  expected  envoys  from  Sparta 
time  to  arrive ;  as  they  were  desirous  that  these  Spartans  should 
themselves  hear  the  brave  answer  which  they  were  fully  minded 
to  give  to  the  Persian  proposals. 

The  Spartan  envoys,  still  ignorant  of  the  mind  of  the  Athenians, 
began  at  once  to  implore  them  not  to  yield  to  the  persuasions 
of  Mardonius  and  become  the  ally  of  the  Persians.  It  was  they 
who  had  started  the  war  and  got  the  other  Greeks  into  the 
trouble,  and  it  would  be  a  shameful  thing  for  them  now  to  desert 
their  alHes  and  kinsmen.  And  that  the  distress  of  the  Athenians 
—  for  their  fields  were  lying  waste  —  might  not  impel  them  to 
the  dishonorable  resolve  from  which  they  were  trying  to  dissuade 
them,  the  Spartans,  in  the  name  of  the  allies,  promised  to  furnish 
food  for  their  families  until  the  war  was  over. 


212  THE    CAMPAIGN  OF  MARDONIUS. 

The  Athenians  now  gave  to  Alexander  the  answer  that  he 
should  carry  back  to  Mardonius  :  "  While  the  sun  holds  his  course 
in  the  heavens,"  it  ran,  "  we  will  never  form  a  league  with  the 
Persian  king.  Rather  shall  we  never  desist  from  fighting  against 
him,  looking  for  aid  to  the  gods  whom  he  has  disdained,  and 
whose  temples  and  statues  he  has  destroyed." 

After  the  Athenians  had  dismissed  Alexander  with  this  answer, 
Aristeides,  as  spokesman  for  his  fellow-citizens,  told  the  Spartan 
envoys  that  they  ought  by  this  time  to  have  known  the  Athenians 
better  than  for  a  moment  to  have  thought  that  they  were  capable 
of  forming  an  alliance  with  the  barbarians.  "  Neither  all  the  gold 
in  the  world,"  said  Aristeides,  ''nor  the  most  beautiful  and  pro- 
ductive of  lands,  offered  them  as  a  bribe,  would  induce  them  to 
join  the  Medes  and  help  to  enslave  Hellas."  Then  the  speaker, 
after  referring  to  the  many  concurring  motives  —  resentment 
against  the  barbarians  for  ruined  homes  and  desecrated  altars, 
remembrance  of  their  kinship  with  all  the  men  of  Hellas,  and 
their  ancient  love  of  freedom  —  which  urged  the  Athenians  to 
maintain  their  resolve  and  to  hold  fast  to  the  Greek  alliance, 
admonished  the  ambassadors  to  see  to  it  that  the  Lacedaemonians 
were  ready  to  do  their  part  in  the  coming  war ;  for  they  might 
rest  assured  that  after  Mardonius  had  received  the  reply  the 
Athenians  had  sent  him,  it  would  not  be  long  before  the  barbarian 
army  would  be  on  the  march  towards  the  south. ^ 

The  Spartans  then  returned  home.  Thus  were  embassies  sent, 
received,  and  dismissed,  and  the  signal  given  for  the  next  great 
fight  between  the  Greeks  and  the  barbarians. 

Mardonius  inarches  from  Thessaly  into  Attica.  —  The  Athe- 
nians were  right  in  supposing  that  Mardonius,  after  receiving  their 
answer,  would  soon  be  upon  them.  He  straightway  broke  up  his 
winter  quarters  and  marched  towards  Athens,  drawing  to  his  army 
immense  numbers  of  hardy  recruits  from  Thrace  and  Macedonia, 
splendid  horsemen  from  Thessaly,  and  soldiers  from  all  the  Greek 
cities  along  his  route.     As  he  marched  into  Boeotia,  the  Thebans 

1  Herod,  viii.  140-144. 


MARDONIUS  RENEWS   OFFERS   OF  FRIENDSHIP.       213 

advised  him  to  establish  his  camp  there,  and,  before  attacking  the 
Greek  aUies,  to  divide  them  by  bribing  some  of  their  chief  men. 
This  was  doubtless  wise  comisel ;  but  Mardonius  instead  of  heed- 
ing it  pushed  on  into  Attica,  being  impelled,  Herodotus  says,  by  a 
great  ambition  to  be  able  to  send  news  to  Xerxes,  by  means  of  fire- 
signals  along  the  islands  in  the  ^gean,  of  the  capture  of  Athens. 

But  Mardonius  found  only  a  deserted  plain  and  an  empty  city, 
such  as  Xerxes  had  found  the  previous  year.  For  the  second  time 
the  Athenians  had  abandoned  their  homes,  and  with  their  families 
and  such  of  their  goods  as  they  could  carry  with  them  taken 
refuge  on  the  island  of  Salamis  and  in  their  ships.  They  had 
delayed  their  flight  as  long  as  they  dared,  hoping  that  the  Spartans 
would  come  to  their  help.  But  this  hope  had  been  disappointed. 
One  cause  of  this  failure  of  the  Spartans  to  come  to  the  prompt 
assistance  of  their  faithful  allies  was  the  same  as  that  which  had 
brought  them  too  late  to  Marathon,  —  their  preoccupation  in  the 
observance  of  a  sacred  festival.  Furthermore,  they  had  been 
hard  at  work  upon  the  wall  across  the  Isthmus,  and  had  it  now  in 
such  a  state  of  completion  that  they  had  little  fear  of  the  barba- 
rians being  able  to  break  into  the  Peloponnesus,  and  consequently 
they  were  indifferent  respecting  the  Athenian  alliance. 

Mardonius  renews  his  Offers  of  Friendship  to  the  Athenians. 
—  Conceiving  that  under  present  circumstances  the  Athenians 
might  think  better  of  their  first  resolve,  Mardonius  sent  to  them  at 
Salamis  an  envoy,  offering  again  his  earlier  proposals  of  friendship 
and  alliance.  The  proposals  of  Mardonius  having  been  presented 
to  the  Athenian  council,  one  of  the  members,  Lycidas  by  name, 
advised  that  they  be  laid  before  the  popular  assembly  for  con- 
sideration. The  mere  suggestion  that  the  proposals  should  be 
entertained  created  such  indignation  among  the  councillors  and 
those  standing  around,  that  they  instantly  set  upon  Lycidas  and 
stoned  him  to  death.  The  women,  stirred  by  the  same  feelings 
that  had  prompted  the  men  to  this  deed,  rushed  to  the  house  of 
Lycidas  and  stoned  to  death  his  wife  and  children.  It  is  probable 
that  this  violent  outbreak  is  in  a  measure  to  be  attributed  to  a 


214  THE    CAMPAIGN  OF  MARDONIUS. 

suspicion  on  the  part  of  the  Athenians  that  Lycidas  had  taken  a 
bribe  from  Mardonius,  and  that  his  counsel  had  been  given  in  the 
interest  of  the  barbarians.^ 

The  Athenians  send  to  Sparta  for  Help.  —  From  their  retreat 
at  Salamis,  the  Athenians  sent  messengers  to  the  Spartans  to  chide 
them  for  their  past  slackness  and  to  admonish  them  as  to  their 
future  conduct.  In  obedience  to  their  instructions,  the  envoys, 
upon  their  arrival  at  Sparta,  sharply  upbraided  the  Spartans 
because  of  their  ungenerous  treatment  of  their  Athenian  allies, 
who  had  just  given  such  proof  of  their  readiness  to  sacrifice 
everything  for  the  common  cause,  and  then  called  upon  them  to 
promptly  muster  their  forces  with  those  of  Athens,  Plataea,  and 
Megara,  in  Attica,  in  order  to  there  offer  battle  to  the  invaders. 

The  ephors  acted  with  great  deliberation,  and  kept  the  Athenian 
ambassadors  waiting  several  days  for  a  reply  to  their  demands. 
It  seems  evident  that  they  were  relying  upon  the  Isthmian  wall, 
and  the  patriotism  of  the  Athenians.  They  were,  however,  re- 
minded by  an  influential  Tegean  that  they  might  go  too  far  in 
their  selfish  policy,  and,  through  breaking  faith  with  the  Athe- 
nians, drive  them  into  an  alliance  with  the  Persians.  Then,  with 
the  Athenian  fleet  at  the  service  of  Mardonius,  the  wall  across  the 
Isthmus  would  be  of  little  account. 

These  representations  of  the  danger  they  would  incur  through  a 
persistence  in  their  selfish  and  ungenerous  treatment  of  their  allies 
led  the  ephors  to  the  resolve  to  send  at  once  a  body  of  troops, 
under  the  command  of  the  regent  Pausanias,  to  the  Isthmus.  But 
they  hid  this  intention  from  the  Athenian  ambassadors,  and 
dispatched  the  forces  secretly  by  night.  The  next  day  the  envoys, 
being  about  to  return  home,  thinking  their  commission  had  re- 
sulted in  nothing,  first  heaped  reproaches  on  the  ephors,  and  then 
gave  notice  to  them  that  the  Athenians,  since  they  were  deserted 
by  their  allies,  would,  through  necessity,  make  the  best  terms  they 
could  with  the  barbarians.  When  it  was  too  late,  then  the  Spar- 
tans would    realize  the  evil  they  had    brought   upon  themselves 

1  Herod,  ix.  5. 


MARDONIUS  RAVAGES  ATTICA.  215 

through  their  desertion  of  such  good  friends  and  alUes  as  the 
Athenians.^ 

To  these  upbraidings  the  ephors  repHed  by  informing  the  en- 
voys that  the  Spartan  forces  were  already  a  good  distance  on  the 
march  to  the  Isthmus.  The  situation  finally  becoming  clear  to 
the  ambassadors,  they  set  out  for  home,  but  not  without  their  own 
opinion  as  to  the  whole  proceeding  on  the  part  of  the  Spartans. 

Although  the  Spartans  were  so  dilatory  in  starting,  still  when 
finally  they  did  move,  they  moved  with  an  army  worthy  of  the 
place  they  held  as  leaders  of  the  Greeks,  and  commensurate  with 
the  gravity  of  the  danger  that  was  threatening.  The  detachment 
sent  on  in  the  night  consisted  of  five  thousand  Spartans,  and 
thirty- five  thousand  Helots,  seven  to  each  Spartan.  To  this  force 
was  afterwards  added  five  thousand  Perioeci,  each  attended  by 
one  Helot,  so  that  an  army  of  fifty  thousand,  all  told,  marched 
from  Laconia.  It  was  the  largest  army  that  Sparta  had  ever  put 
into  the  field,  and  greatly  exceeded  in  number  any  force  that  she 
ever  afterwards  mustered  for  any  undertaking.  Nothing  but  a  full, 
though  late,  realization  of  how  critical  was  the  situation  could 
have  nerved  her  to  this  supreme  effort. 

Mardonius  ravages  Attica  and  withdraws  into  Boeotia.  —  The 
fact  that  the  Spartans  were  on  the  march  in  force  towards  the 
Isthmus  was  made  known  to  Mardonius  by  a  messenger  from  Argos ; 
for  the  Argives,  through  hatred  of  the  Spartans,  were  acting  in  the 
interest  of  the  barbarians.  Upon  the  receipt  of  this  intelligence 
Mardonius  determined  to  withdraw  from  the  mountain-hemmed 
Attica  into  Boeotia,  where  he  would  be  among  friends,  and  where 
the  nature  of  the  ground  would  enable  him  to  use  his  cavalry  to 
advantage.  Before  leaving  Attica,  however,  he  destroyed  at 
Athens  all  the  buildings  that  had  escaped  destruction  the  previous 
year  or  which  had  since  been  restored  by  the  Athenians,  and 
ravaged  the  plain  anew.  Then,  after  a  cavalry  raid  into  Megaris 
in  the  vain  hope  of  destroying  a  small  force  of  Spartans  that  he 
had  learned  was  in  that  region,  he  led  his  army  over  a  low  pass  in 

1  Herod,  ix.  ii. 


216  THE    CAMPAIGN  OF  MARDONTUS. 

the  hills  that  border  the  Athenian  lands  on  the  north,  and  thus 
came  into  Boeotia. 

Once  in  the  Boeotian  territory,  Mardonius  bent  his  course 
towards  Thebes,  and,  sitting  down  in  a  fortified  camp  on  the  banks 
of  the  Asopus  in  the  neighborhood  of  that  city,  awaited  the  arri- 
val of  the  Greeks. 

The  Greeks  follow  the  Persians  into  Boeotia :  they  repulse  a 
cavalry  Attack.  —  Meanwhile  the  Peloponnesian  allies  were  mus- 
tering at  the  Isthmus.  Being  assembled,  they  offered  sacrifices, 
and  finding  the  omens  favorable,  set  forward  on  the  march  to 
Eleusis  in  Attica,  where  they  were  joined  by  the  Athenians.  The 
alHed  army  then  crossed  the  hills  into  Boeotia,  and  drew  up  their 
forces  on  the  lower  slopes  of  Mount  Cithseron,  directly  in  front  of 
the  barbarian  camp. 

In  this  position  the  Greeks  were  attacked  by  the  Persian 
cavalry,  commanded  by  Masistius,  a  rich  Persian  of  unusual 
beauty  of  person,  of  gigantic  stature,  and  a  commander  of  great 
ability.  The  charge,  however,  was  repulsed,  and  Masistius,  having 
been  thrown  from  his  horse,  was  surrounded  by  the  enemy  and 
killed.  It  is  said  that  beneath  his  scarlet  tunic  he  wore  a  golden 
breastplate,  which  rendered  harmless  all  the  blows  the  Athenians 
rained  upon  his  body,  and  that  they  were  able  to  slay  him  only  by 
the  thrust  of  a  weapon  into  his  eye. 

Masistius  was,  after  Mardonius,  the  most  indispensable  and 
most  highly  esteemed  man  in  the  Persian  army,  and  his  death 
was  mourned  by  the  barbarians  with  such  Oriental  vehemence 
that,  in  the  words  of  Herodotus,  "  all  Boeotia  resounded  with  the 
lamentations."  ^ 

After  the  repulse  of  the  cavalry  attack,  the  Greeks  abandoned 
their  first  position  and  took  up  a  new  one  nearer  Plataea,  which 
offered  special  advantages  in  the  abundance  of  its  springs  and  the 
nature  of  the  ground. 

The  Tegeans  and  Athenians  contend  for  the  Place  of  Honor. 
—  In  the  arrangement  of  the  confederate  lines,  a  sharp  dispute 

1  Herod,  ix.  19-24. 


THE  BATTLE    OF  PLAT  MA.  lYl 

arose  between  the  Athenians  and  the  Tegeans  as  to  which  should 
be  assigned  the  second  place  of  honor,  on  the  left  wing.  The 
Tegeans  stoutly  insisted  upon  being  given  the  place,  since  from  the 
time  of  the  Return  of  the  Dorians  this  place  had  always  been 
theirs  by  privilege  and  right,  having  been  earned  by  many  a  brave 
fight  and  many  a  memory-worthy  exploit.  The  Athenians  had 
done  nothing,  they  said,  either  in  ancient  or  modern  times,  to 
entitle  them  to  the  place. 

The  Athenians,  stirred  up  by  the  last  observation  of  the  Tegeans, 
responded  with  warmth,  and  enumerated  some  of  the  things  they 
had  done,  alike  in  remote  and  in  recent  times.  They  recited  their 
deeds  in  the  times  of  the  Heraclidse  ;  their  exploits  under  the  lead 
of  their  king  Theseus  in  the  War  of  the  Seven  against  Thebes ; 
their  fight,  under  the  lead  of  the  same  king,  against  the  Amazons ; 
their  services  in  the  Trojan  War  ;  and  then,  coming  down  to  more 
modern  times,  "  since  a  nation  once  brave  might  in  the  lapse  of 
time  degenerate  and  be  brave  no  longer,"  they  reminded  the 
Tegeans  of  Marathon  —  where  the  Athenians  stood  almost  alone 
against  "  forty  and  six  nations."  If  they  had  never  done  anything 
else,  that  would  entitle  them  to  all  the  privileges  the  Greeks  could 
grant. 

Having  thus  shown  how  good  was  their  claim  to  the  disputed 
honor,  the  Athenians  addressed  themselves  to  the  Spartans,  with 
whom  the  decision  rested,  saying  that  though  they  certainly  had  a 
right  to  the  place  in  question,  still  they  were  ready  to  take  any 
station  that  might  be  assigned  them. 

The  Athenians  carried  the  day ;  for  by  acclamation  the  Spartan 
troops  accorded  to  them  the  post  of  honor  on  the  left  wing,  while 
they  themselves  held  the  right.^ 

The  Battle  of  Plataea  (479  b.c).  —  For  ten  days  the  two  armies, 

1  Herod,  ix.  26-28.  The  Greek  army  thus  marshalled  at  Platasa  was  the  largest 
that  the  Greeks  had  ever  gathered.  There  were  iio.ooo  men,  of  which  number 
38,000  were  hoplites.  The  barbarians  outnumbered  the  Greeks  probably  three  to 
one;  for  in  addition  to  the  force  of  300,000  Asiatic  troops  that  Xerxes  had  left 
behind  with  Mardonius,  he  now  had  under  his  command  Greek  auxiliaries  that 
had  joined  him  to  the  estimated  number  of  50,000.     Herod,  ix.  32. 


21S 


THE    CAMPAIGN  OF  MARDONIUS. 


with  the  Asopus  separating  their  lines,  confronted  one  another, 
both  refraining  from  opening  the  battle  because  the  omens  were 
not  propitious.     The  general  engagement  was  finally  brought  on 


I.  First  Position  occupied  l)y  the  opposing  armies.  h\ 

II.  Second  Position.  c  [ 

III.  Third  Position.  d\ 


Persians. 
Athenians. 
Lacedaemonians. 
Various  Greek  Allies. 


(From  Grote's  Greece.) 

in  the  following  manner.  Several  circumstances  made  it  neces- 
sary for  the  Greeks  again  to  change  their  position.  First,  in  their 
present  position,  they  were  greatly  harassed  by  the  Persian  horse ; 
second,  the  spring  ^  upon  which  they  relied  had  been  choked  up 

1  The  fountain  of  Gargaphia,   \ 


THE  BATTLE    OF  PLATMA.  219 

and  ruined  by  the  enemy  ;^  and  third,  the  Persian  cavalry  shut  up 
their  provision  trains  in  the  passes  of  the  Cithaeron,  and  they  were 
without  food. 

These  various  circumstances  led  the  Greeks  to  resolve  upon 
a  retreat  towards  Plataea,  where  there  was  abundant  water,  and 
where  the  nature  of  the  ground  would  afford  them  protection  from 
the  enemy's  cavalry,  while  their  proximity  to  the  passages  through 
the  Cithseroti  would  enable  them  to  protect  their  provision  trains. 
It  was  agreed  that  the  movement  should  be  executed  under  cover 
of  the  following  night. 

At  the  hour  decided  upon,  the  contingents  forming  the  centre  of 
the  Greek  line  began  their  march  promptly,  but,  in  their  anxiety  to 
get  as  far  as  possible  from  the  Persians,  moved  back  some  dis- 
tance beyond  the  designated  spot.  The  march  of  the  Spartans 
was  delayed  until  morning  through  the  obstinacy  of  one  of  the 
captains,  who,  deeming  a  retreat  disgraceful,  refused  to  move  his 
command,  and  wasted  precious  hours  in  arguing  the  matter  with 
Pausanias.  This  quarrel  delayed  also  the  Athenians,  for  they  were 
timing  their  movements  by  those  of  the  Spartans.  The  result  was 
the  morning  found  both  wings  of  the  Greek  army  widely  separated, 
and  upon  the  march,  instead  of  being  properly  marshalled  in  battle 
order  along  the  proposed  new  line.^ 

Day  revealed  to  the  barbarians  the  movements  of  Pausanias. 
Thinking  the  Greeks  to  be  in  full  retreat,  the  whole  Persian  army, 
with  ranks  all  in  disorder,  started  in  pursuit.  The  Spartans  and 
Tegeans,  soon  overtaken,  turned  upon  their  pursuers,  and  engaged 
them  in  a  firm  hand-to-hand  fight.  Pausanias  sent  a  messenger  to 
the  Athenians  asking  aid ;  but  the  Athenians  were  now  themselves 
being  attacked,  and  could  extend  no  succor.  But  the  Spartans 
and  Tegeans  alone  were  more  than  a  match  for  the  barbarians. 
The  Persians,  fighting  bravely,  but  in  a  haphazard  way,  fell  in 
heaps  before  the  Spartan  spears.     At  last  Mardonius  was  slain. 

1  The  Persian  cavalry  prevented  the  Greeks,  who  had  no  horse,  from  going 
down  to  the  river  for  water. 

2  Herod,  ix.  49-57. 


220  THE   CAMPAIGN  OF  MARDONIUS. 

This  virtually  decided  the  battle.  Disordered  masses  of  the  bar- 
barians —  for  when  the  other  Asiatic  troops  saw  the  Persians  give 
way  they  also  turned  in  flight  —  crowded  towards  the  fortified 
enclosure  (p.  216). 

At  this  critical  moment,  Artabazus  marched  treacherously  from 
the  field,  taking  with  him  the  forty  thousand  troops  under  his 
command.  The  Greeks  in  the  Persian  ranks,  for  the  most  part, 
"  fought  backwardly,"  showing  that  though  they  were  marching 
with  the  Great  King's  army,  their  hearts  were  not  in  his  business ; 
but  such  of  the  Thebans  as  had  espoused  the  Persian  cause  from 
hatred  of  the  Athenians,  fought  obstinately.  When  finally  they 
did  give  way,  they  found  a  refuge  within  the  walls  of  their  own  city. 

The  Spartans  in  their  pursuit  coming  up  to  the  palisade,  at  once 
assailed  it ;  but  not  being  skilful  in  attack  upon  walls,  made  no 
headway  until  the  Athenians  arrived,  when  a  breach  was  soon  made 
in  the  defenses,  and  the  place  taken  by  storm.  The  barbarians 
seem  to  have  been  slain  here  almost  to  a  man.  Not  counting  the 
forty  thousand  men  led  away  by  Artabazus,^  only  about  three 
thousand  of  the  barbarians,  according  to  Herodotus,  survived  the 
battle.  This  is  probably  an  exaggeration ;  but  in  any  event  the 
barbarian  army  was  virtually  annihilated.  The  loss  of  the  Greeks 
was  only  a  little  over  thirteen  hundred.^ 

The  Prize  of  Valor,  the  Booty,  and  the  Offerings  to  the  Gods. 
—  Before  making  a  division  of  the  booty,  the  victors,  in  accord- 
ance with  their  custom,  first  allotted  the  prize  of  valor.  Both  the 
Athenians  and  the  Spartans  were  claimants  for  the  honor,  and  so 
violent  was   the  contention  between  them  that,  to  avoid  a  civil 

1  Artabazus  directed  his  march,  or  rather  flight,  towards  the  Bosporus.  In 
passing  through  Thrace  he  lost  a  large  part  of  his  troops  through  famine  and  the 
swords  of  the  natives.     With  the  survivors,  he  finally  escaped  into  Asia. 

2  A  tale  told  of  Pausanias  in  this  connection  is  valuable,  whether  strictly  true 
or  not,  as  illustrating  the  Greek  abhorrence  of  the  Oriental  practice  of  mutilating 
the  bodies  of  their  slain  enemies.  An  ^ginetan  having  urged  Pausanias,  in 
revenge  for  the  shameful  treatment  that  the  barbarians  had  accorded  to  the  body  of 
Leonidas  at  Thermopylae  (p.  187),  to  behead  and  suspend  on  a  cross  the  body  of 
Mardonius,  Pausanias  rebuked  him  severely,  declaring  that  to  misuse  the  dead  was 
an  act  befitting  a  barbarian,  but  unworthy  of  a  Greek.     Herod,  ix.  79. 


THE    OFFERINGS    TO    THE    GODS.  221 

war,  Aristeides,  the  Athenian  commander,  proposed  that  the  mat- 
ter be  referred  to  a  council  of  all  the  Greeks.  At  this  meeting,  a 
citizen  of  Corinth  moved  that  the  prize  be  bestowed  upon  the 
Platgeans,  which  was  accordingly  done,  and  peace  established  ; 
for  no  one  could  be  envious  or  jealous  of  the  brave  but  unfor- 
tunate little  state  of  Plataea.' 

The  spoils  of  the  battle-field  were  unusually  rich,  for  multitudes 
of  noble  and  wealthy  Persians  were  among  the  slain.  The  cap- 
tured camp  was  filled  with  the  richest  gold-plated  furniture,  with 
gold  and  silver  drinking-cups,  bowls,  bracelets,  chains,  and  other 
ornaments  of  every  kind,  with  inlaid  weapons  and  armor.  Among 
the  spoils  was  the  magnificent  ,war-tent  of  Xerxes,  which  he  had 
left  behind  for  Mardonius.  Seeing  this  with  all  its  luxurious  ap- 
pointments, Pausanias  ordered  the  Persian  cooks  to  make  ready  a 
banquet,  such  as  they  were  used  to  prepare  for  their  master,  and, 
at  the  same  time,  directed  his  own  men  to  lay  a  Spartan  meal. 
The  ludicrous  contrast  moved  Pausanias  to  laughter,  and,  causing 
the  Greek  leaders  to  be  summoned,  he  said  to  them,  directing 
their  attention  to  the  two  tables  :  "  Consider  the  folly  of  this  Per- 
sian, who,  having  such  a  luxurious  table  at  home,  should  come  so 
far  to  possess  himself  of  our  meager  fare."^ 

A  tithe  of  all  the  spoils  was  presented  to  Apollo  at  Delphi.  Out 
of  the  gold  that  fell  to  his  share  was  moulded  a  tripod,  which  was 
mounted  on  a  bronze  stool,  formed  of  three  entwined  serpents. 
More  than  a  hundred  years  after  the  battle,  the  tripod  was  stolen 
by  the  Phocians,  but  a  portion  of  the  bronze  pedestal  may  be 
seen  to-day  at  Constantinople.  Out  of  another  part  of  the  brazen 
spoils  were  made  two  colossal  statues,  one  for  the  Olympian  Zeus, 
and  the  other  for  the  Isthmian  Neptune. 

To  Zeus  the  Protector  was  also  raised  an  altar  at  Plataea.  This 
was  done  in  obedience  to  an  oracle  from  Delphi,  which  had  fur- 
ther given  instructions  that  no  sacrifices  should  be  offered  upon 

1  We  follow  here  Plutarch,  Aristeides,  20.  Herodotus  does  not  tell  to  whom  the 
prize  was  allotted,  nor  does  he  speak  of  the  strife  between  Athens  and  Sparta. 

2  Herod,  ix.  82. 


222  THE    CAMPAIGN   OF  MARDONIUS. 

the  new  altar  until  all  the  fires  throughout  the  Plataean  district  had 
been  extinguished,  because  they  had  been  defiled  by  the  presence 
of  the  barbarians,  and  clean  fire  brought  from  the  common  hearth 
at  Delphi.  In  accordance  with  these  instructions,  every  fire  in 
Plataea  and  the  surrounding  country  was  extinguished,  even  the 
coals  at  the  pyres  of  the  dead  being  quenched.  Then  a  swift 
Platsean  runner,  Euchidas  by  name,  hastened  to  Delphi,  took  fire 
from  the  altar  there,  and  then  ran  back  to  Plataea,  making  the 
run  both  ways,  a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  miles, 
in  one  day.  Embracing  his  friends,  he  gave  to  them  the  sacred 
fire,  and  then,  like  the  runner  from  Marathon,  fell  dead.^ 

When  the  portion  of  the  booty  devoted  to  the  gods  had  been 
set  aside,  the  remainder  was  distributed  among  the  victors,  Pau- 
sanias  receiving  a  tenfold  portion.^ 

The  Consecration  of  the  Plataean  Land.  —  We  have  seen  that 
the  prize  of  valor  was  given  to  the  Platasans.  The  honor  was 
worthily  bestowed,  for  the  Plataeans  had  not  only  fought  well 
alongside  their  patrons  and  friends  the  Athenians,  but  had  also 
given  a  splendid  example  of  self-devotion  for  the  common  cause ; 
for  when  just  before  the  battle  an  oracle  from  Delphi  had  told 
the  Athenians  that  they  would  gain  the  victory  if  they  fought  on 
their  own  territory,  the  Plataeans  had  straightway  voted  that  their 
land  should  be  given  to  Athens  in  order  that  the  Athenians,  with- 
out withdrawing  from  where  they  stood,  as  they  were  minded  to 
do,  might  fight  on  their  own  soil  for  their  own  freedom  and  that 
of  the  other  Greeks. 

The  Plataean  land  did  not,  however,  remain  a  part  of  the  Athe- 
nian territory.  After  the  battle,  Aristeides,  who  feared  on  the  one 
hand  that  such  an  extension  of  Attica  might  arouse  jealousy,, and 
on  the  other  hand  was  unwilling  to  leave  the  Plataeans,  who  had 
been  such  devoted  allies  of  Athens,  exposed  to  the  resentment 
of  their  enemies  the  Thebans,  proposed  that  the  Plataean  land 
should,  like  that  of  Elis  in  the  Peloponnesus,  be  declared  sacred 

1  Plut.  Aristeides,  20. 

2  Herod,  ix.  71-83,  for  various  details  of  the  battle. 


THE  PUNISHMENT   OF   THE    THEBANS.  223 

and  inviolable,  as  the  spot  where  the  gods  had  given  the  Greeks 
their  glorious  victory  over  the  barbarians.  This  was  done.  Pla- 
taea  was  built  up  anew,  and  in  front  of  the  city  gate  was  founded 
a  national  temple  to  Zeus  the  Deliverer,  and  all  the  confederates 
bound  themselves  to  defend  as  a  religious  duty  the  territory  thus 
consecrated,  and  to  punish  any  city  that  should  violate  the  peace 
of  the  land. 

By  the  Plataeans  was  assumed  the  duty  of  caring  for  the  graves 
on  the  battle-field,  and  of  offering  each  year  sacrifices  to  the 
manes  of  "  the  brave  men  who  had  there  died  for  the  freedom  of 
Greece."  As  a  further  memorial  of  the  battle,  it  was  resolved, 
on  Aristeides'  proposal,  that,  besides  yearly  gatherings  at  the  place 
of  commissioners  from  all  the  cities  of  Greece,  every  fifth  year 
there  should  be  held  a  special  commemorative  "  Festival  of 
Freedom,"  with  games  and  contests  and  the  giving  of  prizes,  like 
those  at  Olympia.^ 

The  same  patriotic  feelings  that  had  inspired  these  acts  of  the 
confederates,  caused  them,  at  this  same  time,  under  the  lead  of 
Aristeides,  to  renew  the  alliance  which  they  had  formed  at  Corinth 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war.  It  was  resolved  that  there  should 
be  maintained  by  the  confederated  states,  for  guarding  the  freedom 
of  Greece  and  for  the  further  prosecution  of  the  war  against  the 
barbarians,  an  army  of  ten  thousand  heavy-armed  men,  a  thousand 
horse,  and  a  hundred  war-galleys. 

The  Punishment  of  the  Thebans.  —  From  the  field  of  Plataea 
the  confederates,  before  dispersing,  marched  to  the  city  of  Thebes, 
resolved,  in  respect  to  the  leaders  of  the  Theban  party  that  had 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  barbarians,  to  carry  into  effect  the 
resolution  of  the  council  of  Corinth  at  the  beginning  of  the  war 
(p.  1 80).  The  Thebans  refusing  to  deliver  up  the  chiefs  of  the 
Medizing  party,  the  allies  laid  siege  to  the  city.  After  a  twenty 
days'  investment,  the  Thebans  surrendered  the  chief  offenders, 
on  the  understanding  that  they  should  be  given  a  fair  trial ;  but 
as  soon  as  Pausanias  had  the  men  in  his  power,  he  conveyed  them 

1  Plut,  Aristeides,  21. 


224  THE    CAMPAIGN  OF  MARDONIUS. 

to  Corinth,  having  dismissed  the  alHes,  and  there  put  them  to 
death.  His  reason  for  not  allowing  the  men  a  trial  was  the  fear 
that  they  would  bribe  their  jurors,  and  thus  escape  the  punish- 
ment that  they  so  richly  deserved. 

The  Battle  of  Mycale  (479  b.c).  —  Upon  the  same  day,  ac- 
cording to  tradition,  that  the  Greeks  won  the  victory  over  the 
barbarian  army  at  Plataea,  they  gained  another  over  a  combined 
land  and  sea  force  at  Mycale  in  Ionia. 

The  Greek  fleet  that  fought  at  Salamis  had,  after  the  unsuccess- 
ful pursuit  of  the  Persian  ships  (p.  205)  dispersed  to  their  homes 
for  the  winter.  With  the  opening  of  the  following  spring,  the 
ships  of  the  several  states  mustered  one  hundred  and  eighty 
strong  at  ^gina,  the  Athenian  squadron  being  headed  by  Xan- 
thippus,  who  had  been  given  the  place  held  the  preceding  year 
by  Themistocles,  while  the  supreme  command  of  the  allied  fleet 
was  in  the  hands  of  the  Spartan  king  Leotychides. 

The  Persian  ships  that  escaped  from  Salamis,  after  having  fer- 
ried across  the  Hellespont  the  troops  that  accompanied  Xerxes  in 
his  retreat  into  Asia,  withdrew,  the  greater  part  of  them,  to  Ionia 
for  the  winter.  When  spring  came,  all  the  ships,  about  three 
hundred  in  number,  mustered  at  Samos,  and  from  there  watched 
the  cities  of  Ionia  and  the  yEgean ;  for  since  the  great  fight  at 
Salamis  the  Greeks  enslaved  to  Persia  had  been  restless,  and  were 
ready  at  the  first  favorable  moment  to  strike  for  freedom. 

The  two  fleets,  thus  situated,  were  neither  of  them  at  first  eager 
to  provoke  a  fight.  The  Persians  could  not  forget  Salamis,  and 
distrusted  their  ability  to  cope  with  the  Greeks  on  the  water ;  but 
they  were  still  confident  of  their  own  superiority  on  the  land,  and 
so  waited  quietly  for  the  arrival  of  the  expected  good  news  from 
Mardonius.  The  Greeks,  on  the  other  hand,  were  timid,  and  could 
not  be  induced  to  venture  into  the  ^gean  beyond  Delos. 

While  the  Greek  fleet  was  lying  at  this  island,  certain  Samians 
came  thither  secretly,  and  urged  the  leaders  to  cross  to  Ionia, 
saying  that  the  lonians  only  needed  a  ghmpse  of  their  ships  to  be 
incited  to  revolt  from  the  Persians.     Leotychides  was  mfluenced 


THE    GREEK  FLEET  IN   THE  HELLESPONT.  225 

to  set  sail  for  Samos.  As  the  Greeks  approached  the  island,  the 
Persian  fleet  fled  to  Mycale  on  the  Ionian  coast,  where  Xerxes 
had  an  army  of  sixty  thousand  men.  Under  shelter  of  this  army, 
and  with  its  aid,  the  ships  of  the  fleet  were  dragged  upon  the 
land,  and  a  rampart  built  round  them. 

The  Greek  fleet  came  on  from  Samos,  and,  seeing  the  state  of 
things,  resolved  to  gain  a  naval  victory  on  land.  Disembarking, 
they  advanced  to  the  attack  of  the  Persians,  who  were  drawn  up 
in  battle  order  in  front  of  the  barricade.  Just  at  this  moment  a 
rumor  spread  through  the  ranks  of  the  Greeks  that  their  brethren 
had  gained  a  great  victory  at  Plataea.  A  herald's  staff",  too,  was 
seen  lying  on  the  shore,  as  though  just  cast  up  by  the  waves. 
Thus  encouraged,  the  Greeks  charged  the  barbarians  in  a  wild 
rush,  put  them  to  flight,  and,  pursuing  them  closely,  entered  with 
them  into  the  fortified  enclosure.  Here  all  who  offered  resistance 
were  slain. 

The  victory  was  rendered  more  complete  by  the  action  of  the 
Greeks  in  the  Persian  army,  who,  when  they  saw  how  affairs  were 
running,  turned  their  arms  against  the  barbarians.  ''  On  that  day," 
says  Herodotus,  "  the  lonians  revolted  a  second  time  from  the  Per- 
sians." After  the  battle,  the  Greeks  carried  the  booty  to  their 
vessels,  and  then  burned  the  Persian  ships  where  they  lay.  They 
then  sailed  away  to  Samos. 

This  victory  at  Mycale  was  a  fitting  sequel  to  the  one  at  Plataea  : 
that  had  freed  European  Greece  from  the  presence  of  the  bar- 
barians j  this,  in  the  phrase  of  Herodotus,  "  restored  to  Grecian 
freedom  the  Hellespont  and  the  islands."  For  straightway  Samos, 
Chios,  Lesbos,  and  the  other  islands  of  the  ^gean  that  had  been 
in  vassalage  to  Persia  were  now  liberated,  and  at  once  received 
as  members  into  the  confederacy  of  the  patriot  states  of  the 
mother  land,  and  gave  oath  that  they  would  be  faithful  to  the 
cause  of  Hellas.^ 

The  Greek  Fleet  in  the  Hellespont.  —  The  victorious  fleet  bore 
away  from  Mycale  to  the  Hellespont,  in  order  to  break  down  the 
1  Herod,  ix.  90-106. 


226  THE    CAMPAIGN  OF  MARDONIUS. 

bridges,  which  were  assumed  to  be  still  in  existence.  Upon  arrival 
there  and  finding  that  the  winds  had  destroyed  the  bridges  (p.  207), 
the  Spartan  contingent  of  the  fleet  sailed  for  home,  while  the 
Athenians  laid  siege  to  Sestus,  in  the  Thracian  Chersonese,  and 
just  as  winter  was  coming  on,  forced  the  place  to  open  its  gates. 

The  Athenians  now  returned  home  for  the  winter,  carrying  with 
them  sections  of  the  broken  bridge-cables  which  they  had  found 
at  Sestus,  and  which  were  placed  within  the  temple  of  Athena  on 
the  Acropolis,  there  to  serve  both  as  a  proud  trophy  of  the  war, 
and  as  an  impressive  illustration  of  the  divine  punishment  that 
had  befallen  the  audacious  and  impious  attempt  of  the  barbarians 
to  lay  a  yoke  upon  the  sacred  waters  of  the  Hellespont.^ 

References.  —  Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  viii.  126-144;  i^-  xi-  1-107.  Cur- 
tius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  321-352.  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten 
volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp.  242-294;  (twelve  volume  ed.),vol.  v.  pp.  147-203. 
Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  206-242. 

1  Herod,  ix.  114,  115,  118,  121. 


THE   REBUILDING    OF  ATHENS.  227 


Part   Third. 

FROM   THE  PERSIAN  WARS   TO   THE  BEGIN- 
NING  OF  THE  PELOPONNESIAN  WAR. 

(479-431    B.C.) 


CHAPTER    XV. 

THE   MAKING   OF  THE   ATHENIAN   EMPIRE. 

(479-445  B.C.) 

The  Rebuilding  of  Athens  :  the  New  Walls.  — x\fter  the  battle 
of  Platsea  and  the  expulsion  of  the  barbarians  from  Greece,  the 
Athenians  who  had  found  an  asylum  at  Salamis,  yEgina,  and  other 
places  returned  to  Athens.  They  found  only  a  heap  of  ruins 
where  their  city  had  once  stood.  All  the  houses,  save  a  few  that 
had  been  used  as  quarters  by  the  Persian  officers,  had  been  burned, 
and  even  the  city  walls,  it  would  seem,  had  for  the  most  part 
been  thrown  down. 

Under  the  lead  of  Themistocles,  the  people,  with  admirable 
spirit,  set  themselves  to  the  task  of  rebuilding  their  homes  and 
erecting  new  walls.  The  exalted  hopes  for  the  future  of  their 
city  which  had  been  raised  in  the  Athenians  by  their  almost 
incredible  achievements  during  the  past  few  months,  together 
with  their  resolve  to  create  an  asylum  large  enough  to  receive  the 


228  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

whole  population  of  x-\ttica  in  case  of  another  invasion,  so  that 
they  should  never  again  be  forced  to  become  exiles  without  a 
city,  led  them  to  trace  a  vast  circuit  of  seven  miles  around  the 
Acropolis  as  the  line  of  the  new  ramparts. 

The  rival  states  of  the  Peloponnesus,  particularly  ^'Egina  and 
Corinth,  watched  the  proceedings  of  the  Athenians  with  the  most 
jealous  interest.  While  they  could  not  but  admire  Athens,  still 
they  feared  her.  The  Spartans,  informed  by  the  y^ginetans  of 
what  was  going  on  in  Attica,  sent  an  embassy  to  dissuade  the 
Athenians  from  rebuilding  their  walls,  hypocritically  assigning  as 
the  ground  of  their  interest  in  the  matter  their  fear  lest,  in  case  of 
another  Persian  invasion,  the  city,  if  captured,  should  become  a 
stronghold  for  the  enemy. 

Themistocles,  "  the  Athenian  Odysseus,"  had  a  talent  for  just 
such  diplomacy  as  the  case  seemed  to  demand  ;  for  the  Athenians 
were  not  strong  enough  to  insist  by  force  of  arms  upon  their 
right  to  manage  their  own  affairs.  Accordingly  Themistocles 
caused  the  Spartan  envoys  to  be  sent  home  with  the  reply  that 
Athens  would  send  commissioners  to  Sparta  to  consider  the  mat- 
ter in  council  there.  Then,  as  one  of  the  envoys,  he  himself  set 
out  for  Sparta,  having  previously  arranged  that  the  other  members 
of  the  commission  should  not  leave  Athens  until  the  walls  were 
sufficiently  advanced  to  defy  assault.  With  astonishing  unanimity 
and  energy,  the  entire  population  of  Athens,  the  rich  and  the 
poor,  men,  women,  and  children,  set  to  work  upon  the  walls. 
Material  was  torn  from  temples  and  tombs  and  built  into  the 
defenses. 

While  this  was  going  on  at  Athens,  Themistocles  was  at  Sparta, 
with  amazing  address  wondering  with  the  Lacedaemonians  what 
so  delayed  his  colleagues.  From  day  to  day  the  business  upon 
which  he  had  come  was  postponed,  in  order  to  give  time  for  the 
arrival  of  the  tardy  envoys.  At  length  rumors  came  to  Sparta  of  the 
state  of  affairs  at  Athens.  Themistocles  assured  the  people  that 
these  were  mere  idle  reports.  Fresh  rumors  came.  Then  he  ad- 
vised the  Spartans  to  send  messengers  of  their  own  to  Athens  to  get 


THE  FORTIFICATIONS   OF   THE  PEIR.^US.  11^ 

the  truth  of  the  matter.  They  did  so.  But  Themistocles  had  al- 
ready dispatched  a  messenger  to  the  Athenians  informing  them  that 
the  Spartan  envoys  were  on  the  way,  and  ordering  their  detention 
in  Athens  as  hostages  for  himself  and  the  other  members  of  the 
embassy,  who  had  now  arrived  at  Sparta. 

By  all  these  stratagems  sufficient  time  was  gained  to  enable 
the  Athenians  to  carry  the  wall  to  such  a  height  that  they  could 
defy  interference.  Then  Themistocles  boldly  administered  some 
"  wholesome  advice  to  the  Spartans.  He  told  them,  when  they 
and  their  allies  sent  ambassadors  again  to  Athens,  to  deal  with 
the  Athenians  as  with  reasonable  men,  who  could  discern  what 
belonged  to  their  own  interest,  and  what  to  the  general  interest  of 
Greece." 

These  circumstances  attendant  upon  the  refortifying  of  the 
Athenian  capital  we  have  narrated  at  some  length,  because  of  the 
light  they  throw  upon  the  succeeding  history  of  Athens.  They 
exhibit  the  tremendous  energy  with  which  the  recent  great  events 
of  the  Persian  War,  and  Athens'  part  in  them  all,  had  inspired  the 
Athenians.  As  Grote  observes,  both  arm  and  mind  were  strung 
to  the  very  highest  pitch.  It  was  this  tension,  calling  forth  the 
very  best  in  every  man,  that  carried  forward  events  at  Athens  in 
such  a  remarkable  manner  during  the  generation  immediately  fol- 
lowing the  War  of  Liberation. 

This  contention  respecting  the  walls  of  Athens  also  affords  us  a 
gHmpse  of  the  rising  jealousy  between  Sparta  and  other  states  and 
Athens,  which  at  last,  intensified  by  different  political  tendencies, 
issued  in  the  long  and  calamitous  struggle  of  the  Peloponnesian 
War. 

The  Fortifications  of  the  Peiraeus  (478-477  b.c).  —  At  the 
same  time  that  the  work  of  restoration  was  going  on  at  Athens, 
the  fortifications  of  the  harbor  of  Peirseus,  begun,  as  we  have  seen, 
at  an  earlier  date  (p.  162),  were  being  enlarged  and  strengthened. 
Themistocles  was  here  merely  carrying  out  the  maritime  policy 
which  he  had  formulated  for  the  Athenians  before  the  invasion  of 
Xerxes,  and  to  which  the  circumstances  of  the  past  few  months 


230  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

had  given  a  most  emphatic  endorsement.  That  Athens'  suprem- 
acy depended  upon  control  of  the  sea  had  become  plain  to  all. 
Consequently  the  haven-town  was  now  surrounded  with  walls  even 
surpassing  in  strength  and  fully  equalling  in  compass  the  new  walls 
of  the  upper  city.^ 

The  Peiraeus  soon  grew  into  a  bustling  commercial  city,  one  of 
the  chief  centres  of  trade  in  the  Hellenic  world.  Its  population 
was  made  up  largely  of  resident  aliens,  who  were  attracted  to  the 
place  by  the  extension  to  them  of  unusual  privileges.  The  mer- 
cantile and  trading  classes  among  the  Athenian  citizens  were  also 
naturally  drawn  thither ;  and  it  is  said  that  nothing  but  the  sacred 
memories  and  traditions  that  gathered  about  the  Acropolis  pre- 
vented the  whole  population  of  the  upper  city  from  draining  itself 
into  the  lower  town. 

In  close  connection  with  Themistocles'  policy  respecting  the 
Peiraeus  itself,  stands  his  policy  in  regard  to  the  Athenian  navy. 
The  advice  which  he  had  given  the  Athenians  respecting  the  crea- 
tion of  a  fleet  had  proved  so  wise  and  prescient  that  they  were 
quite  ready  now  to  listen  to  his  further  counsel,  so  that  he  easily 
led  them  to  the  resolve  to  add  each  year  twenty  well-equipped 
triremes  to  the  fleet  with  which  they  had  fought  at  Salamis. 

The  Greek  Fleet  under  Spartan  Lead  continues  the  Work  of 
liberating  the  Greek  Cities.  —  While  the  building  operations  we 
have  described  were  going  on  at  Athens  and  the  Peiraeus,  the 
confederate  fleet  was  engaged  in  setting  free  those  Greek  cities 
which  were  still  held  enslaved  by  the  Persians. 

The  year  following  the  battle  of  Platsea,  a  united  Peloponnesian 
and  Athenian  fleet,  under  the  command  of  the  Spartan  Pausanias, 
sailed  to  Cyprus,  and  in  a  short  time  succeeded  in  hberating  most 
of  the  cities  of  the  island.  Then,  while  the  summer  winds  were 
still  favorable,  the  union  fleet  bore  away  to  the  Bosporus,  for  the 
purpose  of  reconquering  Byzantium,  which  was  still  in  the  hands 
of  a  Persian  garrison.     Before  the  close  of  the  season  the   city 

1  They  were  seven  miles  in  circuit,  about  sixteen  feet  thick,  and  thirty  feet  high, 
and  were  constructed  throughout  of  solid  masonry. 


THE    TREACHERY  OE  PAUSANL4S.  231 

was  captured,  and  thereby  the  control  of  the  gateway  to  the 
Euxine  was  regained  by  the  Greeks.  Not  until  nearly  two  thou- 
sand years  afterwards  did  it  again  fall  into  the  hands  of  Asiatic 
barbarians.^ 

The  Treachery  of  Pausanias.  —  The  unworthy  character  of 
the  Spartan  commander  Pausanias  now  concurred  with  circum- 
stances to  turn  the  current  of  Greek  history  into  a  channel  which 
probably  otherwise  it  would  never  have  followed.  The  elevation 
to  which  he  had  been  lifted  seems  to  have  produced  in  Pausanias 
a  sort  of  dizziness.  He  became  incredibly  conceited,  arrogant, 
and  presumptuous.  He  had  even  gone  so  far  as  to  have  engraved 
on  the  base  of  the  votive  tripod  at  Delphi  (p.  221)  an  inscription 
in  which  he  took  to  himself  all  the  glory  of  the  victory  of  Plataea. 
The  ephors  had  caused  the  offensive  legend  to  be  erased,  and  the 
marks  of  the  erasure  may  be  seen  to-day  upon  the  standard  at 
Constantinople. 

At  just  this  time,  the  insensate  ambition  of  the  regent  was 
suggesting  to  him  the  scheme  of  making  himself  tyrant  of  all 
Greece.  He  beheved  that,  by  securing  the  co-operation  of 
Xerxes  through  offering  to  rule  in  Greece  as  his  viceroy,  he  could 
consummate  this  amazing  piece  of  treachery.  In  pursuance  of 
his  plans,  he  sent  to  Susa  the  Persian  prisoners  taken  at  Byzan- 
tium, together  with  a  letter  in  which  he  actually  offered  to  become 
the  son-in-law  of  the  Great  King.  A  great  change  had  come 
over  the  man  since  the  time  when,  in  the  tent  of  Mardonius  at 
Plataea,  he  had  looked  with  such  disdain  upon  Persian  splendor 
and  luxury  (p.  221). 

Xerxes  was  naturally  greatly  pleased  with  the  prospect  thus 
afforded  him  of  yet  annexing  Greece  as  a  satrapy  to  his  empire, 
and  sent  Pausanias  assurances  of  every  assistance  in  men  and 
money.  The  head  of  Pausanias  seemed  now  to  be  completely 
turned.  He  dressed  hke  a  Persian,  surrounded  himself  with 
Persian  guards,  and  deported  himself  generally  as  though  already 
a  satrap  of  the  Great  King  and  tyrant  of  Hellas.     The  common 

1  In  A.D.  1453  it  became  the  prize  of  the  Ottoman  Turks. 


232  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

soldiers,  particularly  the  Athenians  and  the  other  lonians,  he 
treated  with  outrageous  insolence  and  cruelty,  and  behaved 
towards  his  brother  generals  with  preposterous  arrogance.  They 
were  kept  waiting  when  they  called  to  confer  with  him  upon 
urgent  business,  or  were  refused  by  him  an  audience  altogether, 
on  the  ground  that  he  was  too  busy  to  see  any  one. 

Matters  soon  reached  a  crisis.  Some  Ionian  sailors,  indignant 
beyond  self-restraint  at  the  conduct  of  Pausanias,  while  cruising 
one  day,  purposely  ran  their  ship  into  the  regent's  galley;  and 
when  he,  beside  himself  with  rage,  upbraided  them  for  their  con- 
duct, they  told  him  to  betake  himself  home,  adding  that  nothing 
but  the  memory  of  Plataea  restrained  them  from  visiting  upon 
him  then  and  there  the  punishment  he  so  richly  deserved. 

Shortly  after  this  a  summons  came  to  Pausanias  from  the  ephors 
at  Sparta,  whither  the  information  of  the  state  of  affairs  in  the  fleet 
had  been  carried,  commanding  him  to  return  home  and  give  an 
explanation  of  his  behavior. 

The  Formation  of  the  Confederacy  of  Delos  (477  b.c). — 
Having  repudiated  the  authority  of  Pausanias,  the  Ionian  fleet 
straightway  turned  to  the  Athenian  general  Aristeides  as  leader 
and  commander.  When,  a  little  later,  a  Spartan  general,  Dorcis 
by  name,  arrived  to  take  the  place  of  Pausanias,  the  Ionian  ships, 
which  constituted  the  larger  part  of  the  fleet,  refused  to  recognize 
his  authority.  Thus  was  transferred  from  Sparta  to  Athens  that 
command  of  the  alHed  fleet  of  the  Greek  cities  which  the  Athe- 
nians had  patriotically  yielded  to  the  Spartans  when  the  invasion 
by  Xerxes  was  impending  (p.  180),  but  to  which  even  at  that  time 
they  had  a  just  claim,  as  having  the  largest  navy  in  Hellas. 

Under  the  inspiration  of  Aristeides,  the  Ionian .  states,  in  order 
that  they  might  be  able  to  carry  on  more  effectively  the  work  to 
which  they  had  set  their  hands  of  liberating  the  Greek  cities  yet 
in  the  power  of  the  Persians,  now  formed  a  league  known  as  the 
Confederacy  of  Delos,  in  which  Sparta  and  her  Peloponnesian 
alhes  were  to  have  no  part.  All  the  Asian  cities  of  Ionia  and 
^olus,  almost  all  the  island-towns  of  the  ^Egean,  the   cities  of 


CIMON  AND    THE    WAR   AGAINST    THE   PERSIANS.    233 

Chalcidice,  together  with  those  just  set  free  along  the  Hellespont 
and  the  Bosporus,  became  members  of  the  alliance.  The  league 
was  a  free  association  of  independent  and  equal  states.  Athens 
was,  indeed,  to  be  the  head  of  the  confederacy,  but  she  was  not  on 
that  account  to  possess  or  to  exercise  any  irresponsible  authority 
over  the  other  members  of  the  union.  Aristeides  was  chosen  as 
the  first  president.  Matters  of  common  concern  were  to  be  in 
the  hands  of  a  congress  convened  yearly  in  the  sacred  island  of 
Delos,  and  composed  of  delegates  from  all  the  cities. 

At  Delos,  also,  in  the  temple  of  Apollo,  was  to  be  kept  the  coiii- 
mon  treasure-chest,  to  which  each  state  was  to  make  contribution 
according  to  its  ability.  What  proportion  of  the  ships  and  money 
needed  for  carrying  out  the  purposes  of  the  union  should  be  con- 
tributed by  the  several  states,  was  left  at  first  entirely  to  the  deci- 
sion of  Aristeides,  such  was  the  confidence  all  possessed  in  his 
fairness  and  incorruptible  integrity ;  and  so  long  as  he  retained 
control  of  the  matter,  none  of  the  members  of  the  alliance  ever 
had  cause  of  complaint.^ 

The  formation  of  this  Delian  League  constitutes  a  prominent 
landmark  in  Grecian  history.  It  meant  not  simply  the  transfer 
from  Sparta  to  Athens  of  leadership  in  the  maritime  affairs  of 
Hellas.  It  meant  that  all  the  promises  of  Panhellenic  union 
which  there  were  in  the  Great  Alliance  formed  at  Corinth  in 
481  B.C.  had  come  to  naught.  It  meant,  since  the  Peloponne- 
sian  Confederacy  still  continued  to  exist,  that  henceforth  Hellas 
was  to  be  a  house  divided  against  itself. 

Cimon  and  the  War  against  the  Persians :  the  Capture  of 
Eion  (476  B.C.).  —  One  of  the  ablest  of  the  Athenian  generals  at 
this  time  was  Cimon,  the  son  of  Miltiades,  the  victor  of  Marathon. 
He  was  one  of  those  whose  spirits  had  been  fired  by  the  exciting 
events  attendant  upon  the  Persian  invasion.  He  had  called 
attention  to  himself  and  acquired  a  certain  reputation,  at  the  time 
of  the   abandonment  of  Athens,   by  being  the   first  among   the 

1  The  annual  sum  raised  at  first  amounted  to  four  hundred  and  sixty  talents 
(about  ^500,000). 


234  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

young  Athenian  knights  to  hang  up  his  bridle  as  a  votive  offer- 
ing in  the  temple  of  Athena  on  the  Acropolis  and  thereby  to 
announce  his  resolution  henceforth  to  devote  himself  to  the  ser- 
vice of  the  fleet,  in  accordance  with  the  advice  of  Themistocles. 

To  him  it  was  that  the  command  of  the  confederate  fleet  of  the 
Delian  allies  as  it  set  out  on  the  work  of  completing  the  liberation 
of  the  Greek  cities,  was  entrusted.  Cimon's  first  undertaking  was 
the  siege  of  Eion  (476  B.C.),  at  the  mouth  of  the  Strymon,  on  the 
Thracian  shore.  The  Persian  governor  of  the  city,  Boges  by 
name,  when  he  realized  that  the  fortress  must  soon  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  enemy,  took  a  resolution  peculiarly  Oriental. 
Gathering  all  the  gold  and  silver  treasures  to  be  found  in  the 
city,  he  carried  them  to  the  top  of  the  walls,  and  in  full  sight  of 
the  Greeks  flung  them  into  the  river  beneath.  Then  erecting  a 
great  prye,  he  first  killed  his  wife  and  children  and  household 
slaves  and  threw  their  bodies  upon  it,  and  then  cast  himself  into 
the  flames.^ 

The  capture  of  Eion  is  worthy  of  special  note,  for  the  reason 
that  it  gave  the  Athenians  —  who,  acting  as  conquerors  rather  than 
Hberators,  took  possession  of  the  place  for  themselves  —  a  foothold 
upon  the  Thracian  shore,  and  eventually  secured  to  them  at  the 
expense  of  the  neighboring  Thasians  command  of  the  lucrative 
trade  of  that  region.  We  shall  see  later  what  momentous  con- 
sequences grew  out  of  their  establishment  upon  that  northern 
coast. 

Cimon  at  Scyros  :  the  Relics  of  Theseus.  —  Some  time  after  the 
capture  of  Eion  (in  470  b.c.)  Cimon  engaged  in  an  undertaking 
which  brought  additional  advantages  to  Athens.  The  inhabitants 
of  the  island  of  Scyros  having  been  guilty  of  piracy,  the  Athenians, 
as  the  guardians  of  the  commerce  of  the  ^gean,  took  it  upon 
themselves  to  punish  the  offenders.  The  island  was  easily  over- 
run, and  was  taken  possession  of  by  Athenian  citizens,  as  in  the 
case  of  Salamis  (p.  109,  n.  i).  Scyros  formed  an  excellent  naval 
station  for  the  Athenians,  and  its  acquisition  by  them  was  another 

1  Herod,  vii.  107. 


THE   BATTLE    OF   THE  EURYMEDON. 


235 


Step  towards  the  imperial  position  that  they  were   aiming  at  in 
the  ^gean. 

Or.  the  island  were  found  what  were  declared  to  be  the  bones 
and  the  mighty  spear  and  sword  of  the  national  hero  Theseus 
(p.  17),  who,  according  to  tradition,  had  met  his  death  there 
through  treachery.  The  sacred  relics  were  transported  to  Athens 
with  solemn  pomp,  and  there  buried  amidst  impressive  ceremo- 
nials.    Over   the    spot  was   afterwards    erected    the    magnificent 


Fig.  26.     TEMPLE   OF  THESEUS   AT  ATHENS.     (From  a  photograph.) 

temple  known  as  the  Theseum,  which  is  one  of  the  best  preserved 
of  all  the  monuments  of  Grecian  antiquity.  It  is  probable  that  in 
this  remarkable  affair,  which  naturally  redounded  to  the  honor  of 
Cimon,  fraud  was  mingled  with  pious  credulity. 

The  Battle  of  the  Eurymedon  (466  b.c).  —  Four  years  after  the 
punishment  of  the  pirates  of  Scyros,  Cimon  led  a  strong  expedi- 
tion, consisting  of  three  hundred  war-ships,  to  the  Lycian  coast  of 
Asia  Minor,  for  the  purpose  of  Hberating  the  Greek  cities  in  that 
region  still  held  by  the   Persians.     At  the  mouth  of  the  Eurym- 


236 


THE  MAKING    OF  THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 


edon,  in  Pamphylia,  Cimon  gained  over  the  Persian  fleet  and 
army  a  sea  and  land  victory  (466  B.C.)  which  was  a  counterpart 
of  the  celebrated  fight  at  Mycale.  Shortly  afterwards,  falling  in 
with  a  squadron  of  eighty  Phoenician  ships  which  were  on  their 
way  to  reinforce  the  Persian  fleet  just  destroyed,  he  sunk  or  scat- 
tered the  entire  armament. 

These  successive  victories  completed  the  emancipation  of  the 
Asiatic  Greeks.     All  the  Hellenes  were  once  more  free.     Things 

were  now  restored  to  the 
condition  they  were  in  be- 
fore the  rise  of  the  Lydian 
monarchy,  by  the  kings  of 
which,  as  we  have  seen,  the 
enslavement  of  the  Greek 
cities  was  begun  (p.  129). 
The  victory  at  the  Eu- 
rymedon  added  another  to 
the  memorial  monuments  of 
Athens.  Upon  the  Acropo- 
lis, in  honor  of  the  triumph, 
was  erected  the  beautiful 
temple,  still  standing  as  a 
restoration,  known  as  the 
temple  of  Nike  Apteros,  or 
"  Wingless  Victory." 

The  Death  of  Aristeides 
(about  468  B.C.).  — The 
formation  of  the  Delian 
League  and  the  assess- 
ment of  the  contributions  to  the  common  chest,  seems  to  have 
been  the  last  prominent  service  that  Aristeides  rendered  his 
native  city ;  at  least,  nothing  further  worthy  of  note  is  recorded  of 
his  public  acts.  The  exact  time  of  his  death  is  unknown.  Plu- 
tarch, however,  tells  us  that  he  died  in  such  poverty  that  the  ex- 
penses of  his  burial  were  borne  by  the  state.     He  had  not  used 


Fig.  27.  TEMPLE  OF  NIKEAPTEROS,  OR  WING- 
LESS VICTORY,  ON  THE  ACROPOLIS  AT 
ATHENS.     (From  a  photograph.) 


THE  END    OF  PA  USA  NT  AS  AND    THEMISTOCLES.      2?>1 

his  official  position  to  enrich  himself;  nor  did  he  ever  commit 
an  act,  so  far  as  we  know,  inconsistent  with  the  honorable  title 
that  he  bore  of  the  Just.  He  was  the  best  citizen  that  Athens 
ever  brought  forth. 

The  End  of  Pausanias  and  of  Themistocles.  —  We  must  now 
follow  to  their  less  worthy  end  two  other  men,  the  Spartan 
Pausanias  and  the  Athenian  Themistocles,  both  of  whom  we  have 
seen,  like  Aristeides,  playing  great  parts  in  the  story  we  have  been 
following. 

Pausanias  obeyed  the  summons  of  the  ephors  (p.  232),  which 
reached  him  at  Byzantium,  and  returned  home  to  answer  the 
charge  of  treason.  He  succeeded  in  freeing  himself  from  the  accu- 
sation, probably  by  representing  his  negotiations  with  the  Persians 
as  being,  like  those  of  Themistocles  at  Salamis,  intended  merely 
to  entrap  the  enemy.^  His  efforts,  however,  to  secure  reinstate- 
ment in  his  command  were  unsuccessful ;  notwithstanding  this,  he 
returned  to  Byzantium  as  a  private  person,  and  gathered  in  that 
city,  probably  with  money  furnished  by  Xerxes,  a  band  of  Thracian 
mercenaries,  with  the  intention  doubtless  of  betraying  the  place 
into  the  hands  of  the  Persians.  But  being  driven  out  by  the 
watchful  Athenians,  he  went  to  the  Troad,  where  he  was  waited 
upon  by  messengers  from  the  ephors,  who  a  second  time  had  sent 
for  him  to  come  home  to  give  an  account  of  himself.  He  returned, 
but  no  one  daring  to  appear  as  his  accuser,  he  retained  his  liberty, 
and  moved  about  the  city  at  will. 

This  freedom  he  utilized  to  carry  on  an  intrigue  with  the 
Helots  of  Laconia,  and  to  maintain  a  treasonable  correspondence 
with  the  Persian  satrap  Artabazus.  In  this  latter  matter  he  "  dug 
a  pitfall  for  his  own  feet."  He  placed  in  the  hands  of  a  con- 
fidential slave  a  letter  which  he  was  to  carry  to  the  satrap.  Now 
this  slave  had  observed  that  none  of  the  bearers  of  these  dis- 
patches to  Artabazus  ever  came  back.  This  suggested  to  him 
the  opening  of  the  letter  to  see  what  might  be  its  contents. 
He  found  that  it  closed  with  an  injunction  to  Artabazus  to  put  to 

1  Curtius,  Griech.  Gesch.  ii.  131. 


238  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

death  the  bearer  of  the  dispatch,  in  order  that  no  secrets  might 
be  divulged.  The  indignant  slave  straightway  carried  the  letter 
to  the  ephors.  These  magistrates,  since  the  testimony  of  a  slave 
was  always  regarded  with  suspicion,  resolved  to  bring  it  about 
that  Pausanias  should  bear  witness  against  himself.  Accordingly 
they  caused  the  slave  to  seek  an  asylum  in  a  temple  of  Poseidon. 
As  they  had  supposed  he  would  do,  Pausanias  sought  an  interview 
with  his  slave,  and  in  the  course  of  the  conversation  that  ensued 
—  which  was  overheard  by  two  of  the  ephors  who  had  secreted 
themselves  in  the  temple  —  dropped  words  which  plainly  revealed 
the  fact  that  he  was  guilty  of  the  crime  which  had  been  imputed 
to  him. 

The  ephors  now  took  steps  to  place  the  traitor  under  arrest. 
Pausanias,  however,  divining  their  intention,  fled  for  refuge  to  the 
temple  of  Athena  of  the  Brazen  House.  Not  daring  to  lay  hands 
upon  him  there,  the  ephors  caused  the  door  of  the  temple  to  be 
walled  up,  and  left  the  traitor  to  die  of  starvation.  Just  before  he 
breathed  his  last,  he  was  dragged  from  the  temple,  in  order  that 
the  place  might  not  be  defiled  by  his  death  within  the  sacred 
enclosure  (about  470  B.C.). 

The  closing  events  in  the  life  of  Pausanias  are  interwoven  with 
the  closing  events  in  the  life  of  Themistocles.  The  Spartans 
professed  to  have  found  in  the  letters  which  had  come  into  their 
possession  during  the  trial  of  Pausanias  information  that  showed 
Themistocles  to  be  a  partner  in  the  guilt  of  the  regent.  Themis- 
tocles was  at  this  time  in  exile  at  Argos.  He  had  been  ostracized 
from  Athens  in  471  B.C.  The  exact  grounds  on  which  he  was 
banished  are  unknown  to  us ;  but  he  had  grown  arrogant,  and 
doubtless  had  given  occasion  for  the  suspicion  that  he  entertained 
the  hope  of  some  day  ruhng  as  a  tyrant  in  Athens.  Certain  it  is 
that  no  one  had  any  confidence  in  his  integrity ;  he  was  known  to 
be  accessible  to  bribes,  and  was  feared  generally  as  an  unscrupu- 
lous intriguer. 

At  Argos,  Themistocles  busied  himself  in  stirring  up  trouble 
in  the  Peloponnesus  for  the   Spartans,  whom  he  seems  to  have 


THE  END    OF  FAUSANIAS  AND    THEMISTOCLES.      239 

believed  to  have  had  a  hand  in  bringing  about  his  banishment 
from  Athens.  The  Spartans  resolved  to  drive  him  from  Argos, 
and  if  possible  destroy  him.  The  timely  revelations  in  the  papers 
of  Pausanias  put  them  in  possession  of  evidence  which  they  could 
use  for  his  undoing.  They  accused  him  to  the  Athenians,  who 
brought  him  to  trial  on  the  charge  of  treason.  He  was  found 
guilty,  and  persons  were  sent  to  arrest  him  at  Argos. 

Eluding  the  officers,  Themistocles  fled  first  to  Corcyra,  but 
finally  bent  his  steps  to  Susa,  the  Persian  capital.  Here  he  is  said 
to  have  addressed  to  the  king  the  following  letter :  "  I,  Themis- 
tocles, have  come  to  you,  I,  who  of  all  Hellenes  did  your  house 
the  greatest  injuries  so  long  as  I  was  compelled  to  defend  myself 
against  your  father ;  but  still  greater  benefits  when  I  was  in  safety 
and  he  in  danger  during  his  retreat.  And  there  is  a  debt  of  grati- 
tude due  to  me  [here  he  noted  how  he  had  forewarned  Xerxes  at 
Salamis  of  the  resolution  of  the  Hellenes  to  withdraw,  and  how 
through  his  influence,  as  he  pretended,  they  had  refrained  from 
breaking  down  the  bridges^].  Now  I  am  here,  able  to  do  you 
many  services,  and  persecuted  by  the  Hellenes  for  your  sake. 
Let  me  wait  a  year,  and  then  I  will  myself  explain  why  I  have 
come."^ 

The  time  that  Themistocles  asked  for  was  granted  him.  This 
period  he  utilized  in  learning  the  language  of  the  country.  When 
the  year  had  passed,  Themistocles  was  presented  to  the  king,  who 
was  greatly  pleased  at  having  in  his  service  the  ablest  man  among 
all  the  Greeks ;  for  he  hoped  through  him  to  succeed  in  making 
Greece  a  part  of  his  empire.  He  appointed  him  governor  of  the 
city  of  Magnesia,  in  Asia  Minor,  and  made  abundant  provision 
for  his  wants  by  assigning  to  three  cities  the  duty  of  providing  for 
his  table ;  Magnesia  was  to  furnish  bread,  Lampsacus  wine,  and 
Myus  meat.  Plutarch  relates  that  as  one  day  the  exile  sat  down 
to  his  richly  loaded  board  he  exclaimed,  "  How  much  we  should 
have  lost,  my  children,  if  we  had  not  been  ruined."  He  died 
probably  about  460  b.c,  but  the  circumstances  connected  with 

1  See  p.  206.  2  Thucyd.  i.  137  (Jowett's  Trans.). 


240  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

his  death  are  not  known  with  certainty.  According  to  one  tradi- 
tion, he  died  a  natural  death ;  but  another  account  makes  him  to 
have  committed  suicide.  His  bones  are  said  to  have  been  carried 
to  Athens  and  secretly  buried  in  Attic  soil. 

"Such,"  in  the  words  of  Thucydides,  "was  the  end  of  Pau- 
sanias  the  Lacedaemonian,  and  Themistocles  the  Athenian,  the 
two  most  famous  Hellenes  of  their  day." 

How  the  Athenians  converted  the  Delian  League  into  an 
Empire.  —  During  the  period  marked  by  the  various  transactions 
and  events  narrated  in  the  foregoing  paragraphs,  the  Athenians 
were  gradually  transforming  the  Delian  League  into  a  great  coast 
and  island  empire  of  which  they  were  the  absolute  and  irrespon- 
sible masters.  We  must  now  notice  in  what  way  Athens  used  her 
position  as  head  of  the  confederacy  to  reduce  her  at  first  equal 
and  independent  allies  to  the  condition  of  servile  tributaries. 

The  contributions  assessed  by  Aristeides  upon  the  different 
members  of  the  confederation  consisted  of  ships  and  their  crews 
for  the  larger  states,  and  of  money  payments  for  the  smaller  ones. 
From  the  first,  Athens  attended  to  this  assessment  matter,  and 
saw  to  it  that  each  member  of  the  league  made  its  proper  contri- 
bution. 

After  a  while,  some  of  the  cities  preferring  to  make  a  money 
payment  in  lieu  of  ships,  Athens  accepted  the  commutation,  and 
then,  building  the  ships  herself,  added  them  to  her  own  navy. 
Thus  the  confederates  disarmed  themselves  and  armed  their 
master. 

Very  soon  the  restraints  which  Athens  imposed  upon  her  alHes 
became  irksome,  and  they  began  to  refuse,  one  after  another,  to 
pay  the  assessment  in  any  form.  Naxos,  one  of  the  Cyclades, 
was  the  first  island  to  secede,  as  it  were,  from  the  league  (466 
B.C.).  But  Athens  had  no  idea  of  admitting  any  such  doctrine  of 
state  rights,  and  with  her  powerful  navy  forced  the  Naxians  to 
remain  within  the  union,  and  to  pay  an  increased  tribute. 

About  two  years  later  (in  465  or  464  B.C.),  the  Thasians, 
angered   at  the  interference   by  Athens  in   their  Thracian  trade 


REVOLT   OF   THE   SPARTAN  HELOTS.  241 

(p.  234) ,  revolted,  and  called  upon  Sparta  for  help.  Serious  trouble 
at  home  alone  prevented  the  Spartans  from  giving  the  aid  sohc- 
ited,  for  they  were  viewing  with  growing  uneasiness  and  jealousy 
the  steadily  augmenting  power  of  Athens.  Disappointed  in  receiv- 
ing the  expected  help  from  Sparta,  the  Thasians,  after  sustaining 
a  siege  of  two  years  by  the  Athenian  fleet  under  Cimon,  were 
forced  to  submission.  The  walls  of  their  city  were  demolished, 
and  their  possessions  on  the  Thracian  mainland  taken  from  them. 

What  happened  in  the  case  of  Naxos  and  Thasos  happened  in 
the  case  of  almost  all  the  other  members  of  the  confederation. 
By  the  year  449  b.c.  only  three  of  the  island  members  of  the 
league  —  Lesbos,  Chios,  and  Samos  —  still  retained  their  inde- 
pendence. They  alone  of  all  the  former  allies  did  not  pay 
tribute. 

Even  before  the  date  last  named  (probably  about  457  b.c),  the 
Athenians  had  transferred  the  common  treasury  from  Delos  to 
Athens,  and,  diverting  the  tribute  from  its  original  purpose,  were 
beginning  to  spend  it,  not  in  the  prosecution  of  war  against  the 
barbarians,  but  in  the  carrying  on  of  home  enterprises,  as  though 
the  treasure  were  their  own  revenue.  About  this  time  also  the 
congress  probably  ceased  to  exist. 

Thus  what  had  been  simply  a  voluntary  confederation,  of 
sovereign  and  independent  cities  was  converted  into  what  was 
practically  an  absolute  monarchy,  with  the  Attic  democracy  as  the 
imperial  master.  Thus  did  Athens  become  a  tyrant-city.  From 
being  the  liberator  of  the  Greek  cities  she  had  become  their 
enslaver. 

What  made  this  servitude  of  the  former  allies  of  Athens  all 
the  more  galling  was  the  fact  that  they  themselves  had  been  com- 
pelled to  forge  the  very  chains  which  fettered  them ;  for  it  was 
their  money  that  had  built  and  was  maintaining  the  fleet  by  which 
they  were  kept  in  subjection,  and  forced  to  do  whatever  might  be 
the  will  of  the  Athenians. 

Revolt  of  the  Spartan  Helots :  the  Third  Messenian  War 
(464-456   B.C.).  —  The    trouble,   referred    to   in   the   preceding 


242  THE  MAKING    OF  THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

paragraph,  which  prevented  the  Spartans  from  sending  help  to 
the  Thasians,  was  the  almost  complete  destruction  of  their  city 
by  a  terrible  earthquake  (464  B.C.).  Twenty  thousand  of  the 
inhabitants  are  said  to  have  perished.  In  the  panic  of  the 
appalling  disaster  the  Spartans  were  led  to  believe  that  the  evil 
had  befallen  them  as  a  punishment  for  their  recent  violation  of 
the  temple  of  Poseidon,  from  which  some  Helots,  who  had  fled 
to  the  sanctuary  for  refuge,  had  been  torn. 

The  Helots,  on  their  part,  were  quick  to  interpret  the  event 
as  an  intervention  of  the  gods  in  their  behalf,  and  as  a  signal 
for  their  uprising.  No  sooner  had  the  news  of  the  situation  at 
Sparta  spread  among  them,  than  they  seized  arms  and  hastened 
thither  with  the  purpose  of  making  an  end  once  for  all  of  their 
oppressors.  But  the  Spartans  who  had  survived  the  catastrophe 
were  on  the  alert,  and  the  attack  was  repulsed.  The  Messenians, 
however,  were  now  in  arms.  Entrenching  themselves  in  the  old 
stronghold  on  Mount  Ithome,  they  maintained  against  their  former 
masters  a  long  and  bitter  struggle,  known  as  the  Third  Messenian 
War  (464-456  B.C.). 

The  Spartans,  finding  themselves  unable  to  reduce  their  revolted 
serfs  to  submission,  were  forced  to  ask  aid  of  the  other  Grecian 
states,  ^gina  and  Platsea  both  sent  assistance,  but  there  was 
lacking  in  the  Spartans  and  their  allies  skill  in  conducting  oper- 
ations against  an  enemy  behind  fortifications.  Consequently 
the  Spartans  were  constrained  to  sue  at  Athens  for  help,  for  the 
Athenians  had  a  reputation  for  dexterity  in  carrying  on  sieges. 

Pericles,  one  of  the  leading  statesmen  in  Athens  at  this  time, 
implored  his  countrymen  not  to  lend  themselves  to  the  building  up 
of  the  power  of  their  rival.  But  the  aristocratic  Cimon,  who  had 
always  entertained  the  most  friendly  feelings  for  the  Spartans, 
exhorted  the  Athenians  to  put  aside  all  sentiments  of  enmity 
and  jealousy,  and  to  extend  succor  to  their  kinsmen  in  this 
desperate  posture  of  their  affairs.  "  Let  not  Greece,"  said  he, 
"be  lamed,  and  thus  Athens  herself  be  deprived  of  her  yoke- 
fellow."    The  great  services  Cimon  had  rendered  the  state  enti- 


THE    OSTRACISM   OF  CIMON.  243 

tied  him  to  be  heard.  The  assembly  voted  as  he  advised,  and 
so  the  Athenians  fought  for  some  time  side  by  side  with  the 
Lacedaemonians. 

But  the  Spartans  were  distrustful  of  the  sincerity  of  their  allies, 
and  this  feeling  gradually  grew  into  positive  fear  lest  the  Athenians 
should  take  advantage  of  their  position  in  the  country  and  pass 
over  to  the  side  of  the  enemy.  Acting  under  this  apprehension, 
which  was  probably  entirely  groundless,  they,  with  characteristic 
Spartan  bluntness,  dismissed  the  Athenian  forces.  The  incident 
is  of  special  import  on  account  of  its  revealing  so  plainly  the 
growing  jealousy  and  mistrust  between  the  two  rival  states. 

After  a  prolonged  struggle,  the  Spartans  succeeded  in  subduing 
the  rebellion,  and  in  re-establishing  throughout  Messenia  the  old 
order  of  things.  Many  of  the  refugee  Messenians,  through  the  favor 
of  Athens,  found  an  asylum  at  Naupactus,  on  the  Corinthian  Gulf. 

The  Ostracism  of  Cimon :  the  Areopagus  stripped  of  its 
Authority  (464  b.c). — The  discourteous  dismissal  of  the  Athe- 
nian troops  by  the  Spartans  aroused  the  most  bitter  resentment 
at  Athens.  The  party  of  Pericles,  who  had  always  opposed  the 
resolution  of  aiding  their  rivals  as  impolitic  and  weakly  senti- 
mental, took  advantage  of  the  exasperated  feelings  of  the  people 
to  secure  the  ostracism  of  Cimon  as  the  leader  of  the  aristocratical 
party  and  the  friend  of  Sparta  (461  B.C.),  and  to  effect  some 
important  changes  in  the  constitution  in  favor  of  the  people,  which 
made  it  almost  purely  democratical  in  character. 

The  constitutional  changes  concerned  the  position  in  the  state 
of  the  ancient  court  of  the  Areopagus  (p.  105).  The  great  and 
patriotic  services  rendered  by  this  council  during  the  Persian  Wars 
had  given  it  a  place  of  great  influence  and  power  during  the  years 
immediately  following  the  battles  of  Salamis  and  Plataea.  But 
public  sentiment  had  now  changed.  The  council  was  regarded 
by  the  democratic  party  with  some  such  feelings  of  distrust  and 
hatred  as  are  entertained  by  the  English  Liberals  towards  the 
House  of  Lords.  The  court  seemed  to  them,  as  indeed  it  was, 
the   stronghold  of  aristocratic  prejudice  and  conservatism,  and 


244  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

nothing  but  an  obstruction  in  the  way  of  government  by  the 
people.  The  Hfe  tenure  of  the  members  of  the  council  was  also 
offensive  to  the  democratic  spirit,  just  as  the  hereditary  principle 
in  the  Upper  House  of  the  English  Parliament  is  an  offense  to 
English  radicalism.  The  paternal,  censorious,  and  irresponsible 
character  of  the  authority  of  the  council  also  tended  to  render 
the  body  the  object  of  popular  dislike  and  even  positive  odium. 
Moreover,  some  of  its  members  had  been  recently  found  guilty 
of  serious  misdemeanors,  and  these  disclosures  had  naturally 
tended  to  undermine  the  influence  of  the  council  as  a  whole. 

The  attack  upon  the  Areopagus  was  led  by  Ephialtes,  a  friend 
of  Pericles.  The  court  was  stripped  of  all  its  functions, —  save 
the  trial  of  cases  touching  homicide  and  arson,  —  which  were  now 
distributed  among  the  various  courts  and  boards  of  a  popular 
character ;  namely,  the  public  assembly,  the  discasteries  or  citizen- 
courts,  and  the  Council  of  Five  Hundred. 

This  reform  amounted  to  a  revolution.  It  swept  away  the  last 
bulwark  in  the  constitution  against  the  inroads  of  the  democratic 
spirit.  It  removed  the  last  constitutional  check  upon  the  will  of 
the  people.  Henceforth,  for  good  or  for  ill,  that  will  was  to  be 
supreme.  Henceforth  the  Athenians  were  to  be  their  own 
censors  and  judges,  as  well  as  their  own  legislators.  Henceforth 
the  people  were  themselves  to  be  the  sole  guardians  of  the  con- 
stitution and  the  laws.  As  a  symbol  of  all  this,  Ephialtes  caused 
the  Solonian  tablets  to  be  brought  down  from  the  Acropolis,  where 
they  had  hitherto  been  kept,  and  set  up  in  the  market-place. 

The  oligarchical  party  was  naturally  rendered  desperate  by  the 
success  of  their  democratic  enemies.  The  bitterness  of  feeling 
armed  the  hand  of  the  murderer,  and  Ephialtes  was  assassinated 
(462  B.C.).  This  was  the  first  time,  if  we  forget  the  slaying  of 
the  tyrant  Hipparchus,  that  a  "  poHtical  assassination  "  had  taken 
place  at  Athens.     Unfortunately  it  was  not  to  be  the  last. 

Pericles  comes  to  the  Head  of  Affairs  (about  460  b.c). — 
The  assassination  of  Ephialtes  and  the  ostracism  of  Cimon  left 
Pericles  the  sole  prominent  leader  in  Athens,  and  from  this  time 


tVAJ^    WITH  MGINA   AND    CORINTH.  245 

on  until  his  death  shortly  after  the  opening  of  the  Peloponnesian 
War,  he  was  the  very  soul  of  the  Athenian  democracy. 

His  policy  was  just  the  opposite  of  that  of  Cimon,  which  was 
the  maintenance  in  Greece  of  a  dual  hegemony,  Sparta  being 
allowed  the  leadership  on  land  and  Athens  on  the  sea.  Pericles 
believed  that  such  a  double  leadership  was  impracticable,  and  the 
whole  aim  of  his  policy  was  to  make  the  authority  of  Athens 
supreme  not  only  on  the  sea  but  also  on  the  land.  In  all  this 
he  but  resumed  the  policy  of  Themistocles,  whose  political  heir 
he  was. 

Pericles  through  Alliances  extends  the  Influence  of  Athens 
in  European  Greece.  —  In  pursuance  of  his  anti-Spartan  policy 
Pericles  entered  into  an  alliance  with  Argos  (461  B.C.),  the  invet- 
erate enemy  of  Sparta.  Argos  had  by  this  time  recovered  in  a 
large  measure  from  the  terrible  blow  given  her  by  the  Spartan 
king  Cleomenes  (p.  73).  She  had  captured  and  destroyed  the 
ancient  towns  of  Mycenae  and  Tiryns,  and  had  subjected  to  her 
authority  other  towns  of  Argolis,  theireby  regaining  her  old  posi- 
tion of  pre-eminence  in  that  district  of  the  Peloponnesus.  Hence 
an  alliance  with  her  was  a  matter  of  great  moment  to  Athens. 

Pericles  also  formed  an  alliance  with  Thessaly,  thinking  that 
the  Thessalian  cavalry  would  prove  a  valuable  addition  to  the 
land  forces  of  Athens.  But  the  most  important  alliance  of  all 
was  that  which  Pericles  entered  into  with  the  city  of  Megara 
(459  B.C.),  since  this  gave  the  Athenians  control  of  the  passes 
leading  from  the  Peloponnesus  into  Attica  and  Boeotia. 

War  with  -^gina  and  Corinth  (459-456  b.c.)  :  the  Fall  of 
.fflgina.  —  Naturally  all  these  movements  looking  towards  the 
extension  and  consolidation  of  the  power  and  influence  of  Athens 
both  in  the  Peloponnesus  and  in  Central  Greece,  intensified  the 
jealousy  of  Sparta,  and  especially  created  alarm  in  the  nearer 
Dorian  states  of  ^Egina  and  Corinth.  Sparta,  however,  at  just 
this  moment,  could  do  nothing  to  prevent  the  Athenians  from 
carrying  out  their  ambitious  policy,  since  she  was  now  in  the 
midst  of  her  trouble  with  her  revolted  Helots  (p.  242).     Corinth 


246  THE  MAKING    OF  THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE, 

and  ^gina,  therefore,  resolved  to  attempt  with  simply  their  own 
forces  to  arrest  this  dangerous  expansion  of  the  Athenian  power. 

The  Athenians  exhibited  extraordinary  energy  m  defending 
themselves  and  their  allies.  They  defeated  in  two  naval  engage- 
ments the  allied  Corinthian  and  ^ginetan  fleet,  laid  regular  siege 
to  ^gina,  and  warded  off  an  attack  upon  Megara.  At  this  same 
time  the  Athenians  were  also  fighting  against  the  Persians  in 
Egypt  with  a  fleet  of  some  two  hundred  ships. 

After  a  protracted  blockade,  ^gina  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
Athenians  (456  B.C.).  The  ^ginetans  were  forced  to  throw 
down  the  walls  of  their  city,  to  surrender  their  ships,  and  to  pay 
tribute  to  Athens.  Thus  did  Athens  rid  herself  of  one  of  the 
most  formidable  of  her  commercial  rivals,  and  thus  was  struck 
from  the  roll  of  the  free  states  of  Hellas  a  city  which  had  played 
a  great  part  in  Grecian  history,  from  the  heroic  age  down  to  the 
memorable  fight  at  Salamis. 

The  Construction  of  the  Long  Walls  (about  461-456  b.c). — 
About  this  time  the  Athenians  were  carrying  towards  completion 
the  celebrated  so-called  Long  Walls, ^  which  connected  Athens 
with  the  ports  of  Peirseus  and  Phalerum.  Later  (445  B.C.),  as  a 
double  security,  they  built  a  third  wall,  which  ran  parallel  to  the 
northernmost  of  the  first  walls.^  By  means  of  these  great  ram- 
parts Athens  and  her  ports,  with  the  intervening  land,  were  con- 
verted into  a  vast  fortified  district,  capable  in  time  of  war  of 
holding  the  entire  population  of  Attica.  With  her  communication 
with  the  sea  thus  secured,  and  with  a  powerful  navy  at  her  com- 

1  This  device  of  practically  carrying  the  sea,  so  far  as  war  operations  were  con- 
cerned, to  an  inland  city,  was  not  now  for  the  first  time  acted  upon.  Just  previous 
to  this  the  Athenians  had  built  for  their  Megarian  allies  two  long  walls  which  con- 
nected the  city  of  Megara  with  its  harbor  town  Nissea.  But  these  walls  were  only 
about  one  mile  in  length,  or  one-fourth  that  of  those  now  undertaken. 

2  The  Long  Walls  were  each  between  four  and  five  miles  in  length,  and  sixty 
feet  high.  They  were  defended  by  numerous  towers,  which,  when  Athens  became 
crowded,  were  used  as  shops  and  private  dwellings.  The  walls  were  employed  as 
highways,  the  top  being  wide  enough  to  allow  two  chariots  to  pass  each  other  con- 
veniently. The  foundation  of  the  northern  wall  now  forms  in  part  the  road-bed  of 
the  railroad  running  from  the  Peiroeus  to  Athens. 


ATHENS  BECOMES  SUPREME. 


247 


mand,  Athens  could  now  bid  defiance  to  her  foes  on  sea  and 
land. 
Athens  becomes  Supreme  in  Boeotia,  Phocis,  and  Locris.  — 

Meanwhile,  just  before  the  fall  of  ^gina,  a  call  for  help  from  their 
mother-land  Doris  (p.  26,  n.i),  a  call  which  could  not  be  allowed  to 
go  unheeded,  caused  the  Spartans  to  send  an  army,  made  up  chiefly 
of  their  allies,  across  the  Corinthian  gulf  into  Central  Greece. 


The  Academy 


ATHENS   AND   THE    LONG   WALLS. 


With  the  disturbers  of  the  Dorians  punished,  this  army  took  up 
quarters  with  the  Boeotians,  since  the  watchfulness  of  the  Athe- 
nians prevented  its  returning  to  the  Peloponnesus  either  by  the 
way  it  had  come  across  the  gulf  or  through  Megara. 

Taking  advantage  of  the  presence  in  the  country  of  this  force, 
the  oligarchical  party  in  the  Boeotian  cities  planned  a  revolution, 
which  had  for  its  aim  the  revival  of  the  old  Boeotian  confederacy 
and  the  making  of  Thebes  again  the  real  master  of  the  land.  At 
the  same  time  the  oligarchs  in  Athens  were  in  communication  with 


248  THE  MAKING    OF   THE  ATHENIAN  EMPIRE, 

the  Spartan  army  in  Boeotia,  and  were  planning  with  its  help  the 
overthrow  of  the  Athenian  democracy. 

Pericles,  becoming  acquainted  with  the  plans  of  the  conspira- 
tors, determined  to  ward  off  the  threatened  danger  by  at  once 
attacking  the  Peloponnesian  army  in  Boeotia.  With  a  force  of 
fourteen  thousand  men,  composed  in  part  of  Argive  and  Thessa- 
lian  contingents,  Pericles  marched  into  Boeotia  and  offered  battle 
to  the  Spartans  and  their  allies  at  Tanagra  (457  B.C.).  For  the 
first  time  in  two  generations  the  Spartans  and  the  Athenians  thus 
met  as  declared  enemies.^  The  Athenians  were  defeated,  their 
Thessalian  allies  having  basely  deserted  them  in  the  midst  of  the 
fight  and  gone  over  to  the  enemy. 

The  Spartans,  with  characteristic  lack  of  energy  and  push, 
instead  of  following  up  the  advantages  of  their  victory,  marched 
back  to  the  Peloponnesus  by  the  way  of  the  Isthmus,  the  Athe- 
nians being  now  in  no  situation  to  dispute  their  passage  through 
the  Megarian  mountains.  The  consequence  was  that  two  months 
later  the  energetic  Athenians  were  again  in  Boeotia  with  another 
army.  At  CEnophyta  (456  b.c.)  they  gained  a  decisive  victory 
over  the  Boeotian  forces,  and  all  Boeotia,  together  with  Phocis  and 
Locris,  came  in  subjection  to  Athens.  At  Thebes  the  oligarchical 
party  was  dispossessd  of  power  and  a  democratic  government  set 
up.  The  other  Boeotian  cities  were  deprived  of  their  indepen- 
dence, and  were  bound  to  follow  the  lead  of  Athens  in  war.  The 
Locrians  were  obliged  to  furnish  hostages  as  pledges  of  loyal  con- 
duct. Thus  at  one  stroke  was  the  authority  of  Athens  extended 
over  a  great  part  of  the  historic  ground  of  Central  Greece.  It 
looked  as  though  Pericles'  dream  of  a  land  empire  for  Athens,  in 
connection  with  her  maritime  dominion,  was  about  to  be  realized. 

Athenian  Disaster  in  Egypt  (454  b.c).  —  The  extraordinary 
activity  of  the  Athenians,  and  their  wonderful  resources,  are  shown 
by  the  fact  that  at  the  very  time  they  were  carrying  on  their  opera- 
tions in  Greece  proper  and  extending  their  authority  and  influence 
there  in  every  direction  at  the  expense  of  the  friends  and  allies  of 

1  The  last  hostile  meeting  before  this  had  taken  place  in  507  B.C.  (p.  125). 


THE  RECALL    OF  CLMON.  249 

Sparta,  they  were  prosecuting  vigorous  campaigns  against  the  Per- 
sians, the  common  enemy  of  Hellas. 

As  we  have  noticed  (p.  246),  at  the  time  of  the  blockade  of 
^gina,  they  were  sustaining  a  fleet  of  two  hundred  ships  in  the 
Syrian  waters  and  in  Egypt,  where  they  were  aiding  a  revolt  of 
the  Egyptians^  against  the  Persian  king,  their  object  being  to  detach 
Egypt  from  the  Persian  empire,  and  to  annex  the  rich  and  popu- 
lous island  of  Cyprus  to  the  Delian  League.  Here,  however,  they 
met  with  a  terrible  loss.  Being  shut  up  in  an  island  formed  by 
interlacing  branches  of  the  Nile,  they  were  closely  besieged  by  the 
Persians,  who,  after  maintaining  the  blockade  for  over  a  year,  finally 
rendered  the  island  untenable  by  draining  the  canal  which  formed 
its  defense  on  one  side.  The  Athenians  now  burned  their  ships, 
which  could  no  longer  be  of  any  use  to  them,  and  after  a  stubborn 
fight  with  the  enemy  who  swarmed  over  the  dry  bed  of  the  canal, 
were  compelled  to  surrender  (454  b.c).  Those  that  escaped 
marched  across  the  desert  to  Cyrene,  whence  they  found  their  way 
home  by  ship. 

The  Recall  of  Cimon  (454  b.c.)  :  Ms  Death  (449  b.c.)  :  End 
of  the  War  with  the  Persians.  —  The  year  of  this  disaster  saw 
the  recall  of  Cimon  from  exile.  The  splendid  conduct  of  his 
friends  and  supporters  at  the  battle  of  Tanagra,  had  caused  a 
change  of  feeling  at  Athens  towards  him.  His  maxim  had  always 
been  "  Peace  among  the  Hellenes  and  united  war  against  the  bar- 
barians." Through  his  influence,  a  truce  of  five  years  was  now 
arranged  between  Athens  and  Sparta  (451  b.c). 

The  hands  of  the  Athenians  were  now  free  to  resume  their 
attacks  upon  the  Persians  and  to  avenge  the  terrible  defeat  in 
Egypt.  Two  hundred  ships  were  placed  under  the  command  of 
Cimon,  to  be  used  against  the  common  enemy  as  he  might  deem 
best.  Cimon  sailed  to  Cyprus,  designing  to  attack  the  Phoenician 
cities  there  which  still  held  to  the  Persians.  Shortly  after  his 
arrival  at  the  island,  sickness  put  an  end  to  his  hfe  (449  B.C.). 
After  gaining  a  splendid  sea  and  land  victory  (battle  of  Salamis, 
1  Under  the  lead  of  Inarus,  a  Libyan. 


250  THE  MAKING    OF   THE   ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

449  B.C.),  the  Athenians  returned  home,  bearing  with  them  with 
pious  care  the  bones  of  their  beloved  commander. 

The  death  of  Cimon  deprived  the  Athenians  of  probably  the 
greatest  commander  who  had  ever  risen  among  them.  For  more 
than  a  quarter  of  a  century  he  had  been  the  leader  of  their  victo- 
rious fleets  in  the  War  of  Liberation.  But  he  was  something  more 
than  a  mere  soldier  and  admiral.  He  was  a  statesman  whose 
policies,  though  possibly  sometimes  unwise,  were  at  least  patriotic 
and  indicative  of  an  outlook  that  embraced  not  Athens  alone  but 
all  Hellas.  His  disposition  was  kind  and  generous,  and  he  dis- 
pensed his  riches  with  a  free  hand  in  benefactions  to  the  poor,  in 
the  erection  of  magnificent  public  monuments  at  Athens,  and  in 
the  beautifying  of  the  parks  and  walks  in  and  about  the  city.  The 
Academy  owed  much  of  its  beauty  and  attractiveness  to  his  munifi- 
cence, and  he  is  said  to  have  laid  at  his  own  expense  the  founda- 
tion of  a  considerable  section  of  the  Long  Walls.  His  temporary 
loss  of  popular  favor  and  his  ostracism  were  a  reflection,  not  upon 
him,  but  upon  those  who  sent  him  into  exile. 

Cimon  had  been  the  most  strenuous  advocate  of  the  policy  of 
unceasing  war  against  Persia.  His  death  seems  to  have  opened 
the  way  for  a  cessation  of  hostilities  between  the  Great  King  and 
the  Greek  cities,  which  had  been  practically  continuous  from  the 
time  of  the  Ionian  Revolt.  The  Greeks  had  nothing  further  to 
gain  by  prolonging  the  war.  The  Persians  had  long  since  been 
expelled  from  every  part  of  Hellas. 

The  Athenians  are  said  to  have  sent  an  ambassador  by  the 
name  of  Callias  to  Susa  to  arrange  the  terms  of  peace.^  The 
Athenian  orators  of  a  later  time  boastfully  declared  that  the  terms 
of  the  treaty  were,  that  no  Persian  war-ship  should  pass  the 
eastern  limit  of  Lycia  in  the  Mediterranean,  nor  beyond  the 
Cyanean  Rocks,  near  the  entrance  of  the  Bosporus,  in  the  Euxine  ; 

1  This  is  the  so-called  "  Peace  of  Cimon,"  or  "  Peace  of  Callias."  Everything 
about  it,  as  explained  in  the  text,  is  uncertain.  Some  writers  place  the  treaty  just 
after  the  battle  of  the  Eurymedon  (466  B.C.),  others  just  after  the  death  of  Cimon. 
See  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  362-367. 


ATHENS  AT   THE  HEIGHT   OF  HER  POWER.  251 

and  that  no  Persian  satrap  in  Asia  Minor  should  attempt  to  exer- 
cise any  authority  within  three  days'  foot-journey  of  the  coast. 
The  Athenians,  on  their  part,  were  to  make  no  further  attacks 
upon  Cyprus  or  Egypt. 

It  is  not  probable  that  a  definite  treaty  of  this  character  was  ever 
made  between  Persia  and  the  Greek  cities,  yet  there  seems  to 
have  been  an  understanding  reached  by  the  parties  concerned 
which  practically  amounted  to  the  same  thing.  From  the  time 
of  the  battle  of  the.Eurymedon  (466  b.c.)  until  towards  the  close 
of  the  Peloponnesian  War,  no  Persian  war-ship  ever  appeared  in 
the  ^gean ;  and,  on  the  other  side,  the  Greeks,  after  the  expedi- 
tion to  Cyprus  (449  B.C.),  refrained  from  making  any  further 
attacks  upon  the  Persian  empire. 

Athens  at  the  Height  of  her  Power  (448  e.g.).  —  Athens  had 
now  reached  the  highest  point  of  power  and  prosperity  that  she 
ever  attained.  The  ^gean  had  become  an  Athenian  lake.  Its 
islands  and  coast  lands,  together  with  the  Hellespontine  region, 
formed  practically  an  Athenian  empire.  The  revenue  ships  of 
Athens  collected  tribute  from  two  hundred  Grecian  cities. 

In  addition  to  these  imperial  possessions,  Athens  controlled, 
through  willing  or  unwilling  allies,  a  considerable  part  of  continental 
Greece.  From  the  Corinthian  Gulf  to  the  Pass  of  Thermopylae 
on  the  Malian  Gulf  all  the  states  were  dependent  upon  her  will, 
^gina  had  become  a  part  of  her  territory ;  Argos  stood  in  close 
alliance  with  her. 

And  while  the  power  and  prestige  of  Athens  had  been  thus 
constantly  rising,  the  reputation  and  influence  of  her  rival,  Sparta, 
had  been  as  steadily  declining.  It  almost  seemed  as  though  the 
union  of  the  cities  of  Hellas  was  to  be  effected  on  an  imperial 
basis  through  the  energy  and  the  achievements  of  the  Athenians. 

Events  leading  up  to  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce  (445  b.c). — 
But  within  a  short  time  the  affairs  of  Athens  had  assumed  a  very 
different  aspect.  In  447  b.c.  the  oligarchical  party  in  Boeotia  arose 
against  the  democratic  governments  which  Athens  had  set  up  in 
the  Boeotian  cities.     The  Athenians,  under  the  lead  of  Tolmides, 


252  THE  MAKING    OF   THE   ATHENIAN  EMPIRE. 

hastened  to  the  help  of  their  friends ;  but  they  had  gone  out 
with  an  insufficient  force,  and  met  with  an  overwhelming  defeat 
(447  B.C.).  The  party  hostile  to  Athens  now  came  to  power  in 
all  the  cities  of  Boeotia,  while  at  the  same  time  Phocis  and  Locris 
were  lost  to  the  Athenian  alhance.  Under  a  single  blow  the 
whole  structure  of  Athenian  authority  in  Central  Greece  had 
crumbled  in  ruins. 

Troubles  thickened.  The  subject  cities  of  Euboea,  the  most 
inportant  of  all  the  possessions  of  Athens,  now  also  rose  in  revolt. 
Pericles  was  hurrying  to  the  island  with  an  army  to  suppress  the 
uprising,  when  news  was  brought  to  him  that  the  Athenian  garrison 
in  Megara  had  been  treacherously  set  upon  by  the  Megarians,  aided 
by  the  Corinthians  and  others,  and' massacred.  Moreover,  to  add 
to  the  seriousness  of  the  situation,  just  at  this  juncture  a  Spartan 
army,  under  the  lead  of  the  young  king  Pleistoanax,  and  acting  in 
concert  with  the  Euboean  rebels,  marched  through  the  now  open 
passes  of  Megaris,  and  began  to  devastate  the  Attic  plain  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Eleusis. 

The  resourcefulness  and  energy  of  Pericles  alone  saved  the 
Athenian  state.  He  bribed  the  young  Spartan  king  and  his  coun- 
sellors, and  thus  secured  the  withdrawal  from  Attica  of  the  Spartan 
army.  This  danger  being  averted,  Pericles  hastened  with  a  strong 
force  across  the  straits  of  Euboea,  and  quickly  reduced  the  revolted 
cities  there  to  obedience  (446  b.c).  The  island  was  now  bound 
more  firmly  than  ever  to  Athens  by  the  reorganizing  of  the  consti- 
tutions of  the  various  cities,  and  by  the  establishment  of  additional 
citizen  colonies,  like  the  one  at  Chalcis  (p.  126). 

But  Megara  was  not  recovered,  and  Pericles  was  fain  to  seek 
peace  with  Sparta.  Negotiations  were  opened  which  ended  in  the 
celebrated  Peace  of  Pericles,  or  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce  (445  B.C.). 
By  its  terms  each  of  the  rival  cities  was  left  at  the  head  of  the 
confederation  it  had  formed,^  but  neither  was  to  interfere  with  the 
subjects  or  allies  of  the  other,  while  those  cities  of  Hellas  which 

1  Athens,  however,  was  to  withdraw  from  all  places  in  the  Peloponnesus, 
Nisaea,  Troezen,  etc.,  in  which  she  had  established  garrisons. 


THE    THIRTY   YEARS'    TRUCE.  253 

were  not  yet  members  of  either  league  were  to  be  left  free  to  join 
either  according  to  their  choice.  Megara  and  the  cities  of  Boeotia 
became  at  once  members  of  the  Spartan  confederacy. 

The  real  meaning  of  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce  was  that  Athens 
must  give  up  her  ambition  to  establish  a  land  empire  and  hence- 
forth be  content  with  supremacy  on  the  seas. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Lives  of  Pausanias,  Themistodes,  Aristeides,  and 
Cimon.  Abbott,  Pericles  and  the  Golden  Age  of  Athens  (Heroes  of  the 
Nations),  chs.  iii.-ix.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  353-459.  Grote, 
History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp.  330-437;  (twelve  volume  ed.), 
vol.  V.  pp.  239-352.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  243-415.  Cox, 
The  Athenian  Empire  from  the  Flight  of  Xerxes  to  the  Fall  of  Athens  (Epoch 
Series) ;  earlier  chapters.  Cox,  Lives  of  Greek  Statesmen :  "  Aristeides," 
" Themistokles,"  "Pausanias,"  and  "Kimon." 


254  THE   AGE    OF  PERICLES. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

THE  AGE  OF    PERICLES. 

(445-431    B.C.) 

General  Character  of  the  Period.  —  The  fourteen  years  imme- 
diately following  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce  are  usually  designated  as 
the  Years  of  Peace.  During  all  this  period  Athens  was  involved 
in  only  one  short  war  of  note  (p.  257).  x'\nd  not  only  was  there 
peace  throughout  the  empire  of  Athens,  but  also  throughout  the 
Mediterranean  world.  There  was  peace  between  the  Eastern 
Greeks  and  the  Persians,  as  well  as  between  the  Western  Greeks 
and  the  Carthaginians.  The  rising  city  of  Rome,  too,  was  at 
peace  with  her  neighbors,  and  throughout  Spain  and  Gaul  the 
tribes  had  laid  aside  their  arms.  Thus  there  was  peace  through- 
out the  world,  as  happened  again  four  centuries  later  in  the  reign 
of  the  Roman  emperor  Augustus.  And  as  that  later  period  of 
peace  marked  the  Golden  Age  of  Rome,  so  did  this  earlier  era 
mark  the  Golden  Age  of  Athens.^ 

The  epoch,  as  we  here  limit  it,  embraced  less  than  half  the  Hfe- 
time  of  a  single  generation,  yet  the  influence  it  has  exerted  upon 
the  civilization  of  the  world  can  hardly  be  overrated.  During  this 
short  period  Athens  gave  birth  to  more  men  of  real  genius  than 
probably  all  the  world  besides  has  produced  in  any  period  of 
equal  length. 

Among  all  the  great  men  of  this  age,  Pericles  stood  pre-eminent. 
He  was  in  a  large  measure  the  creator  of  the  age,  so  that  by  right 

1  Lloyd,  The  Age  of  Pericles,  vol.  ii.  p.  iii. 


GENERAL    CHARACTER    OF   THE  PERIOD.  255 

it  is  called  after  him  the  Age  of  Pericles.^  "  Pericles,"  says  the 
historian  Lloyd,  "  was  the  chosen  and  trusted  guide  of  at  once 
the  most  pure  and  the  most  democratic  government  the  world  had 
ever,  —  nay  has  ever  seen,  and  which  owed  this  qualification,  at 
least,  very  importantly  to  himself.  What  it  achieved  under  his 
guidance,  what  he  achieved  by  com- 
mand of  its  councils  and  resources, 
it  has  taxed  the  best  powers  of  the 
best  critics  and  the  best  historians 
both  of  poHtics  and  of  the  arts  to 
tell."  2 

But  though  the  authority  of  Peri- 
cles in  the  Athens  of  this  period  was 
so  absolute,  still  this  authority,  as  the 
language  just  quoted  intimates,  was 
merely  that  which  genius  and  charac- 
ter justly  confer.  Pericles  ruled,  as 
Plutarch  says,  by  the  art  of  persua- 
sion. His  throne  was  the  Bema. 
He  was  never  even  archon.  The 
only  offices  he  ever  held  were  those  ^''^-  ^^-    p^R'^les. 

of  strategus,  superintendent  of  public  works,  and  superintendent 
of  the  finances. 

The  Demos  was  the  source  and  fountain  of  all  power.  The 
reforms  and  revolutions  of  a  century  and  more  had  finally  removed 
all  restraints  upon  the  will  of  the  people,  and  that  will  was  now 
supreme.  Every  matter  which  concerned  Athens  and  her  empire 
was  discussed  and  decided  by  the  popular  assembly.  Never 
before  in  the  history  of  the  world  had  any  people  enjoyed  such 
unrestricted  political  liberty  as  did  the  citizens  of  Athens  at  this 

1  This  designation  is  a  very  elastic  one :  by  it  is  often  meant  the  whole  period 
marked  by  the  influence  of  Pericles,  say  from  the  assassination  of  Ephialtes 
(p.  244)  in  462  B.C.  to  the  death  of  Pericles  in  429  B.C. ;  and  again  it  is  employed 
to  designate  the  entire  period  of  Athenian  ascendency  from  the  battle  of  Plataea  to 
the  outbreak  of  the  Peloponnesian  War. 

2  Lloyd,  7^Ae  Age  0/ Pericles,  vol.  ii.  97. 


256  THE  AGE    OF  PERICLES. 

time,  and  never  before  were  any  people,  through  so  intimate  a 
knowledge  of  public  affairs,  so  well  fitted  to  take  part  in  the 
administration  of  government.  As  a  rule,  every  citizen  was  quali- 
fied to  hold  pubhc  office.  At  all  events  the  Athenians  acted  upon 
this  assumption,  as  is  shown  by  their  extremely  democratic  prac- 
tice of  filling  almost  all  the  public  offices  by  the  use  of  the  lot. 
Only  a  very  few  positions,  and  these  in  the  army  and  navy,  which 
called  for  special  quaUfications,  were  filled  by  ballot  or  open 
voting.^ 

The  Ostracism  of  Thucydides  (443  b.c).  —  We  have  said  that 
Pericles'  influence  was  supreme  during  the  period  with  which  we 
are  at  present  concerned.  There  was  no  serious  attempt  made 
by  any  one  to  dispute  this  supremacy  save  just  at  the  opening  of 
these  years,  when  Thucydides,^  a  relation  of  Cimon,  and  a  really 
able  man,  assumed  the  lead  of  the  old  oligarchical  party  and 
endeavored  to  discredit  Pericles  and  his  policy.  One  feature  of 
that  policy  to  which  he  offered  the  most  strenuous  opposition  was 
the  spending  of  the  money  of  the  allies  for  the  sole  benefit  of  the 
Athenians.  He  maintained  that  this  was  wrong,  and  that,  if  the 
tribute  was  no  longer  needed  for  carrying  on  the  war  against 
Persia,  then  it  should  no  longer  be  exacted.  Thucydides  did  not 
gain  a  large  following.  His  adherents,  in  the  meetings  of  the 
public  assembly,  all  sat  together  on  the  same  benches  for  the  pur- 
pose of  better  supporting  their  leader  ;  but  this  revealed  the  weak- 
ness of  the  party,  and  they  were  nicknamed  "  The  Few."  The 
device  of  ostracism  was  at  last  resorted  to,  and  Thucydides  was 
sent  into  exile,  as  his  relation  Cimon  had  been  before  him ;  and 
Pericles  from  this  on  had  a  comparatively  free  hand  in  carrying 
out  his  policy.^ 

1  The  person  designated  by  lot  for  any  position  was  obliged  to  undergo  a  kind 
of  examination  before  he  could  assume  the  office ;  but  this  examination  was  a 
merely  formal  matter,  probably  very  much  like  that  which  the  alien  among  us  seek- 
ing citizenship  is  required  to  undergo  in  respect  to  good  character. 

2  The  son  of  Melesias,  and  not  the  historian. 

3  It  is  natural  of  course  that  one  who  occupies  such  a  position  as  that  held  by 
Pericles  should  awaken  many  jealousies  and  stir  numerous  resentments.    And 


PEklCLES  SUPPRESSES    TME  REVOLT   OF  SAMOS.       2Sl 

Pericles  suppresses  the  Revolt  of  Samos  (440  b.c).  —  We 
have  already  said  that  the  quiet  of  the  so-called  years  of  peace 
was  interrupted  once  by  the  din  of  hostilities.  It  was  the  revolt 
from  Athens  of  the  important  island  of  Samos  that  broke  the  gen- 
eral quietude.  The  Samians  had  refused  to  acquiesce  in  a  decision 
which  Athens  had  rendered  as  arbitrator  in  a  dispute  between 
them  and  the  Milesians.  Pericles  had  gone  to  the  island,  taken 
from  the  oligarchs  the  control  of  the  government,  and  transported 
a  hundred  of  their  order  to  Lemnos  to  be  held  there  as  hostages 
for  the  good  behavior  of  the  remainder.  This  arbitrary  and  out- 
rageous act,  as  it  was  regarded  by  the  Samians,  since  Samos  was 
still  an  independent  ally  of  Athens  and  not  a  subject,  tribute-pay- 
ing state  like  most  of  the  islands  of  the  ^gean,  provoked  a  deter- 
mined revolt.  At  the  same  time  Byzantium  also  seceded  from 
the  empire. 

The  situation  was  regarded  as  alarming,  for  Samos  had  a  power- 
ful fleet,  and  the  city  possessed  the  formidable  fortifications 
constructed  by  the  tyrant  Polycrates  (p.  95)  ;  besides  there  was 
danger  not  only  of  the  revolt  spreading  among  the  subject  states 
of  Athens,  but  of  interference  by  the  Peloponnesians  on  the  side 
of  the  rebels.  Hence  all  the  ten  generals,  including  Pericles, 
hurried  across  the  ^gean  to  Samos  with  a  strong  fleet  of  sixty 
ships  to  crush  the  uprising.  After  a  siege  of  nine  months,  the  city 
was  forced  to  surrender.  The  Samians  were  required  to  throw 
down  their  walls,  surrender  their  war-ships,  give  hostages,  and  pay 

Pericles  did  have  many  enemies,  and  was  frequently  subjected  to  annoyance  and 
persecution.  Usually  the  attacks  upon  him  were  made  indirectly  through  his 
friends.  Thus  charges  of  corruption  and  sacrilege  were  brought  against  his  friend 
Pheidias  (see  ch.  xxviii.),  which  without  doubt  were  primarily  intended  to  annoy 
Pericles.  Also  Aspasia,  a  brilliant  Milesian  woman  who  was  associated  with  Peri- 
cles in  a  way  condemned  by  modern  morality  (see  ch.  xxxi,),  was  charged  among 
other  things  with  impiety.  Pericles  was  able  to  secure  her  acquittal  only  by  making 
before  the  court  a  most  abject  plea  in  her  defense.  Again,  Anaxagoras,  a  philos- 
opher to  the  loftiness  of  whose  teachings  Plutarch  attributes  in  large  measure  the 
elevation  and  liberality  of  the  views  of  Pericles,  who  was  his  friend  and  -disciple,  was 
prosecuted  on  the  charge  of  irreligion  (see  ch.  xxx.).  The  outcome  of  the  trial 
was  his  banishment  from  Athens. 


258  THE  AGE    OF  PERICLES. 

the  cost  of  the  war.  Byzantium  at  the  same  time  made  peace 
with  Athens. 

The  revolt  might  easily  have  proved  a  much  more  serious  matter 
than  it  did  ;  for  the  Samians,  after  they  had  resolved  upon  revolt, 
had  sent  envoys  to  Sparta  to  ask  for  help.  The  Spartans  were 
inclined  to  grant  the  petition,  and  called  a  congress  of  their  allies 
to  consider  the  matter.  At  this  meeting  the  Corinthians,  who,  like 
the  Athenians,  had  subordinate  allies  and  were  interested  in  uphold- 
ing the  principle  of  authority,  maintained  as  Hellenic  law  that 
every  independent  city  had  a  perfect  right  to  deal  as  it  pleased 
with  its  free  or  independent  allies,  and  that  no  other  state  had  any 
right  to  interfere.  This  attitude  of  the  Corinthians  is  all  that  pre- 
vented the  Peloponnesians  from  taking  action  hostile  to  Athens, 
which  was  a  piece  of  extraordinary  good  fortune  for  her,  since 
their  interference  at  that  moment  might  easily  have  resulted  in  the 
ruin  of  her  empire.  When  half  a  generation  later  the  onset  from 
the  side  of  the  Peloponnesus  came,  the  Athenian  empire  was 
better  consolidated,  and  ready  for  the  shock. 

The  Limitation  of  Citizenship  to  Persons  of  pure  Attic  De- 
scent. —  A  few  years  before  the  time  where  we  have  now  arrived, 
Pericles  had  secured  the  enactment  of  a  law  which  had  a  very 
important  bearing  upon  the  history  of  the  period  with  which  we 
are  dealing.  This  was  a  law  Hmiting  Athenian  citizenship  to  per- 
sons born  of  an  Athenian  father  and  an  Athenian  mother.^  What 
influences  brought  about  this  legislation  we  do  not  know  with  cer- 
tainty;  but  it  would  seem  that  just  now,  since  the  privileges  and 
immunities  of  Athenian  citizenship  were  becoming  valuable,  those 
possessing  these  rights  were  growing  more  and  more  anxious  to 
keep  them  as  exclusively  as  possible  to  themselves. 

1  Arist.  Ath.  Pol.  ch.  26.  The  law  was  passed  in  the  year  451  B.C.  According  to 
Plutarch,  almost  five  thousand  persons  were  disfranchised  by  the  act,  and  the  roll  of 
citizens  thereby  reduced  to  14,050.  We  have  an  illustration  of  the  working  of  the 
law  in  the  case  of  Pericles  himself.  In  the  last  year  of  his  life  he  was  deprived  by 
death  of  both  his  sons,  and  was  thus  left  without  an  heir;  but  by  a  special  decree  of 
the  Ecclesia  an  illegitimate  son  of  his  by  the  celebrated  Milesian  Aspasia  was  made 
an  Athenian  citizen  and  permitted  to  bear  his  father's  name.     Plut.  Pericles,  37. 


THE  LIMITATION  OF  CITIZENSHIP,  259 

This  feeling  may  be  likened  to  that  which  is  growing  up  among 
ourselves  respecting  citizenship,  and  which  would  place  restrictions 
upon  the  naturalization  of  foreigners,  withholding  from  them  the 
rights  and  privileges  which  have  been  so  freely  extended  to  aliens 
in  the  past. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  motives  which  prompted  the  pass- 
ing of  the  law,  it  marked  a  most  significant  change  in  the  policy 
of  the  Athenian  state.  Up  to  this  time  Athens  had  been  the  most 
liberal  of  all  the  cities  of  Greece  in  the  admission  of  aliens  or 
semi-aliens  to  the  franchise  of  the  city.  It  was  the  opening  of  her 
gates  to  strangers  in  the  time  of  Theseus  (p.  102)  that  laid  the 
basis  of  her  historical  greatness.  The  same  liberal  policy,  followed 
by  the  legislators  Solon  and  Cleisthenes,  had  broadened  and 
strengthened  the  foundations  of  the  state,  and  contributed  largely 
to  give  Athens  her  imperial  position  among  the  states  of  Hellas. 
This  was  the  only  path  by  which  Athens  could  possibly  reach  the 
goal  of  Panhellenic  aspiration,  —  the  union  into  a  real  nation  of 
the  multitude  of  Greek  cities.  It  was  the  path  upon  which  Rome 
was  just  now  entering,  and  by  which  she  was  to  gain  the  dominion 
of  the  world.  From  the  time  of  the  legendary  Romulus  on,  Rome 
never  shut  her  gates  absolutely  against  aliens,  but  gradually  ad- 
mitted to  Roman  citizenship  ever  wider  and  wider  circles  of  for- 
eigners, until  at  last  every  freeman  in  the  empire  was  a  citizen  of 
Rome. 

Probably  it  was  impossible  for  Athens  to  play  in  history  the 
part  of  Rome.  The  feeling  of  the  Greek  for  his  own  city  was  too 
strong.  But  we  cannot  help  asking  ourselves  when  we  see  Athens 
thus  abandoning  the  liberal  policy  which  had  carried  her  so  far  and 
done  so  much  to  secure  for  her  the  commanding  position  she  held 
in  Greece,  and  adopting  the  principle  of  political  exclusion,  what 
might  have  been  her  future  had  she  only  steadily  adhered  to  the 
earlier  and  more  generous  principle,  and  kept  her  gates,  as  Rome 
did  hers,  wide  open  to  strangers,  and  thereby  kept  full  and  strong 
the  ranks  of  her  citizens. 

We  are  told  that  as  an  immediate  result  of  the  law  in  question 


260  THE   AGE    OF  PERICLES. 

five  thousand  persons  were  disfranchised,  and  the  list  of  Athenian 
citizenships  reduced  to  about  fourteen  thousand. 

Pericles'  Policy  in  regard  to  Athenian  Colonization.  —  It  was 
a  part  of  the  policy  of  Pericles  to  consolidate  the  empire  which 
Athens  had  gained  and  to  tighten  her  holid  upon  dependent  allies  or 
conquered  territory,  by  the  establishment  of  Athenian  settlements, 
particularly  of  citizen  colonies  or  cleruchies  (p.  77,  n.).  Even 
before  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce  the  Athenians  had  established  a 
considerable  number  of  cleruchies  in  different  islands  of  the 
^gean,  as  well  as  on  the  Thracian  shore.  During  the  present 
period  Pericles  established  an  additional  number  of  these  military 
settlements,  together  with  some  regular  colonies  in  different  parts 
of  the  empire.  To  the  motive  just  stated  for  establishing  foreign 
settlements,  there  now  seems  to  have  been  added  that  of  provid- 
ing for  the  unemployed  and  discontented  classes  of  the  capital. 
The  number  of  these,  it  would  appear,  had  become  dangerously 
increased  by  the  law  limiting  Athenian  citizenship,  upon  which 
we  have  just  commented. 

One  of  the  most  important  of  the  regular  colonies  founded  by 
Pericles  was  that  of  Thurii,  in  Southern  Italy  (443  b.c).  This 
was,  in  fact,  a  restoration  on  a  new  site  of  the  ancient  Sybaris, 
which  had  been  destroyed  by  its  rival  Croton  about  seventy  years 
before  this.  The  incentive  to  the  undertaking  was  an  appeal  to 
the  Hellenic  world  for  help  to  rebuild  the  city  walls,  made  at  just 
this  time  by  the  descendants  of  the  ancient  Sybarites.  Pericles 
gathered  for  the  enterprise  volunteers  from  all  parts,  so  that  the 
population  of  the  new  city  was  of  a  very  mixed  character, — 
Dorians,  lonians,  and  Cohans  all  living  together  within  its  walls. 
Among  the  distinguished  men  who  made  the  new  city  their  home 
was  the  historian  Herodotus,  who  here  wrote  his  history  of  the 
great  struggle  between  Greece  and  Persia. 

More  important,  however,  to  Athenian  interests  was  the  great 
colony  of  Amphipolis,  founded  a  little  later  (437  B.C.)  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Strymon  in  Thrace.  This  city  became  the  centre 
of  Athenian  activity  in  this  Thracian  region,  and  was  destined  to 


PERICLES  TAKES   CITTZENS  INTO   PAY  OF  STATE.      261 

be  the  scene  of  some  of  the  most  stirring  transactions  of  the 
Peloponnesian  War. 

From  these  matters  pertaining  to  the  foreign  poHcy  of  Pericles 
we  turn  now  to  notice  some  features  of  his  domestic  policy. 

Pericles  takes  the  Citizens  into  the  Pay  of  the  State. —  It  was 
a  fixed  idea  of  Pericles  that  in  a  democracy  there  should  be  not 
only  an  equal  distribution  of  political  rights  among  all  classes,  but 
also  an  equalization  of  the  means  and  opportunities  of  exercising 
these  rights,  together  with  an  equal  participation  by  all  in  social 
and  intellectual  enjoyments.  By  such  an  equalization  of  the 
privileges  and  pleasures  of  poHtical  and  social  life,  he  would 
destroy  the  undue  influence  of  the  rich  over  the  poor,  and  banish 
class  envy  and  discord. 

In  promoting  his  views  Pericles  carried  to  great  length  the 
system  of  payment  for  the  most  common  public  services.  Thus 
he  introduced,  or  at  least  organized,  the  system  of  payment  for 
military  services  ;  hitherto  the  Athenian,  save  probably  as  respects 
service  in  the  fleet,  had  served  his  country  in  time  of  war  without 
compensation.  He  also  secured  the  payment  of  the  citizen  for 
serving  as  a  juryman, —  a  very  important  innovation.  Through  his 
influence  also,  or  that  of  his  party,  salaries  were,  during  this  period 
when  everything  was  being  democratized,  attached  to  the  various 
civil  offices,  all  of  which  were  originally  unpaid  positions.  This 
reform  enabled  the  poorer  citizens  to  offer  themselves  as  candi- 
dates for  the  diff"erent  magistracies,  which  under  the  earlier  system, 
notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  the  constitution,  had  been 
practically  open  only  to  men  of  means  and  leisure. 

It  was  the  same  motives  that  prompted  the  above  innovations 
which  led  Pericles  to  introduce  or  to  extend  the  practice  of 
supplying  all  the  citizens  with  free  tickets  to  the  theatre  and  other 
places  of  amusement,^  and  of  banqueting  the  people  on  festival 

1  This  payment  by  the  state  of  the  admission  money  to  the  theatre  was  known 
as  the  theoricon;  the  pay  for  serving  as  a  juror  in  the  dicasteries  was  named 
dicastica;  that  for  attendance  at  the  Ecclesia,  ecclesiasHcon.  Pay  for  attendance  at 
the  Ecclesia  was  not  introduced  until  some  years  after  the  time  of  Pericles. 


262  THE  AGE    OF  PERICLES, 

days  at  the  public  expense.  Respecting  the  effect  of  these  par- 
ticular measures  upon  the  character  of  the  Athenian  democracy, 
we  shall  say  a  word  in  a  following  paragraph.^ 

The  outcome  of  the  general  policy  of  Pericles  was  that  before 
the  beginning  of  the  Peloponnesian  War  almost  every  citizen  of 
Athens  was  in  the  pay  of  the  state.  Aristotle  says  that  more  than 
twenty  thousand  were  receiving  payment  for  one  kind  of  service 
or  another.^ 

The  Dicasteries. —  Among  the  services  just  enumerated  for 
which  the  citizen  received  a  payment  from  the  state  was  that 
rendered  by  the  Athenian  juryman  in  the  great  popular  courts. 
These  tribunals  formed  such  a  characteristic  feature  of  the  Athens 
of  Pericles  that  we  must  pause  here  long  enough  to  cast  a  glance 
upon  them. 

Each  year  there  were  chosen  by  lot  from  the  whole  body  of 
Athenian  citizens  of  thirty  years  of  age  and  upwards  six  thousand 
persons,  six  hundred  from  each  tribe,  who  collectively  formed 
what  was  known  as  the  Heliaa.  One  thousand  of  this  number 
was  held  in  reserve ;  the  remaining  five  thousand  were  divided 
into  ten  divisions  of  five  hundred  each.  These  divisions  were 
called  dicasteries,  and  the  members  dicasts  or  jurymen.  Although 
the  full  number  of  jurors  in  a  dicastery  was  five  hundred,  still  the 
usual  number  sitting  on  any  given  case  was  between  two  hundred 

1  Plutarch  says  that  Pericles  introduced  this  system  of  state  doles  and  largesses 
in  order  to  outbid  Cimon,  who  bought  the  favor  of  the  multitude  by  an  open- 
handed  liberality,  setting  a  free  table,  throwing  down  the  fences  around  his  orchards 
so  that  all  might  help  themselves  to  the  fruit,  and  by  generous  gifts  to  needy 
persons.  Although  rivalry  between  Pericles  and  Cimon  may  have  suggested  to 
the  former  some  of  his  socialistic  measures,  still  his  system  in  general  must  have 
been,  as  we  have  said,  the  outgrowth  of  his  views  as  to  the  proper  functions  of  the 
state,  particularly  of  a  state  holding  the  imperial  position  that  Athens  was  then 
maintaining. 

2  The  various  classes  and  magistrates  supported  by  the  public  funds  are  given 
as  follows :  6ooo  dicasts,  i6oo  bowman,  1200  horsemen,  500  senators,  500  harbor- 
guards,  50  city-guards,  700  domestic  magistrates,  700  foreign  magistrates,  2500  hop- 
lites,  4000  sailors,  the  crews  of  20  watch-ships,  2000  sailors  forming  crews  of  ships 
employed  in  collecting  tribute,  together  with  jailers  and  other  officers.  Constitu- 
tion of  Athens,  ch.  24. 


ADORNS  ATHENS    WITH  PUBLIC  BUILDINGS.         263 

and  four  hundred.  Sometimes,  however,  when  an  important  case 
was  to  be  heard,  the  jury  would  number  two  thousand  or  even  more. 

Just  when  these  citizen  courts  were  instituted  is  unknown  with 
certainty.  There  were  jDopular  courts  from  the  time  of  Solon, 
but  they  first  became  of  importance  upon  the  overthrow  of  the 
Areopagus  by  Ephialtes  (p.  244). 

There  was  an  immense  amount  of  law  business  brought  before 
these  courts ;  for  they  tried  not  only  all  cases  arising  between  the 
citizens  of  Athens,  but  attended  also  to  a  large  part  of  the  law 
business  of  the  numerous  cities  of  Athens'  great  empire.  All 
cases  arising  between  subject  cities,  all  cases  in  which  an  Athe- 
nian citizen  was  interested,  and  finally,  indeed,  all  important  cases 
arising  in  the  dependent  states  were  brought  to  Athens  and 
heard  in  these  courts.  It  is  easy  to  see  that  the  volume  of  busi- 
ness transacted  in  them  must  have  been  immense. 

The  pay  of  the  juror  was  at  first  one  obol  per  day ;  but  later 
this  was  increased  to  three  obols,  a  sum  equal  to  about  eight  cents 
in  our  money.  This,  it  seems,  was  sufficient  to  maintain  an 
Athenian  citizen  of  the  poorer  class. 

When  a  case  was  to  be  tried,  it  was  assigned  by  lot  to  one  of 
the  dicasteries,  this  method  of  allotment  being  observed  in  order 
to  guard  against  bribery. 

The  average  Athenian  enjoyed  sitting  on  a  jury.  As  Lloyd 
says,  "the  occupation  fell  in  wonderfully  with  his  humor."  The 
influence  of  the  courts  upon  the  Athenian  character  was  far  from 
wholesome.  They  fostered  certain  tendencies  among  the  Athe- 
nians which  needed  repression  rather  than  stimulation. 

The  decision  of  the  jurors  was  final.  There  was  no  body  or 
council  in  the  state  to  review  their  decision.  The  judgment  of  a 
dicastery  was  never  reversed  or  annulled.  The  decisions  of  the 
dicasts  were  not  always  consonant  with  justice ;  but  probably  the 
verdicts  were,  on  the  whole,  as  just  and  reasonable  as  are  those  of 
the  modern  jury. 

Pericles  adorns  Athens  with  Public  Buildings.  —  Athens  hav- 
ing achieved  such  a  position  as  she  now  held,  it  was  the  idea 


264 


THE  AGE    OF  PERICLES. 


of  Pericles  that  the  Athenians  should  so  adorn  their  city  that  it 
should  be  a  fitting  symbol  of  the  power  and  glory  of  their  empire. 
Nor  was  it  difficult  for  him  to  persuade  his  art-loving  country- 
men to  embellish  their  city  with  those  masterpieces  of  architecture 
that  in  their  ruins  still  excite  the  a'd miration  of  the  world. 

Among  various  structures  was  the  Odeon  or  "  Music  Hall," 
erected  just  beneath  the  AcropoUs.  This  building  was  intended 
for  the  musical  contests  that  were  held  in  connection  with  the 


Fig.  29.     THE    CARYATID    PORCH    OF   THE    ERECHTHEUM.      (From  a  photograph.) 


Panathenaic  festivals.  The  roof  of  the  structure  was  an  imitation 
of  the  great  tent  of  Xerxes,  which  was  a  part  of  the  spoils  of  the 
field  of  Plataea  (p.  221).  Indeed  it  is  possible  that  the  tent 
itself  was  at  first  made  to  do  service  as  a  roof. 

Near  the  Odeon,  on  the  southeastern  slope  of  the  Acropolis, 
was  the  celebrated  theatre  of  Dionysus,  which  Pericles  is  believed 
to  have  improved  and  adorned. 

But  the  most  noteworthy  of  the  Periclean  structures  were 
grouped  upon  the  Acropolis.     Here,  as  the  gateway  to  the  sacred 


266  THE  AGE    OF  PERICLES. 

enclosure  of  the  citadel,  were  erected  the  magnificent  Propylaea, 
which  have  served  as  a  model  for  similar  structures  since  the  age 
of  Pericles.  A  chamber  in  one  of  the  wings  was  adorned  with 
frescoes  by  the  celebrated  painter  Polygnotus.  The  beautiful  little 
temple  of  Nike  Apteros  (Wingless  Victory),  which  stood  on  the 
right  as  one  entered  the  enclosure,  has  already  been  mentioned 
(p.  236). 

The  Erechtheum,  sacred  to  Athena  Polias  and  Poseidon,  was 
erected  on  the  site  of  an  older  temple  which  perished  with  the 
other  buildings  on  the  Acropolis  at  the  time  of  the  Persian  inva- 
sion. The  beautiful  porch  of  the  Caryatides,  shown  in  the 
accompanying  cut  (Fig.  29),  was  added  some  time  after  the 
death  of  Pericles. 

But  the  most  perfect  of  all  the  buildings  erected  here  was  the 
Parthenon,  sacred  to  the  virgin  goddess  Athena.  The  architect 
of  this  building  was  Ictinus ;  the  sculptures  were  designed  by 
Pheidias.  Within  was  the  celebrated  ivory  and  gold  statue  of  the 
goddess.  Near  the  temple  stood  the  colossal  bronze  statue  of 
Athena  Promachos,  made,  it  is  said,  from  the  spoils  of  Marathon, 
whose  glittering  spear-point  was  a  beacon  to  the  sailor  rounding 
Cape  Sunium. 

The  Athenians  obtained  the  vast  sums  of  money  needed  for 
the  prosecution  of  their  great  architectural  and  art  undertakings 
from  the  treasury  of  the  Delian  confederacy.  The  allies  naturally 
declaimed  bitterly  against  this  proceeding,  complaining  that 
Athens  with  their  money  was  "  adorning  herself  as  a  vain  woman 
decks  her  body  with  gay  ornaments."  But  Pericles'  answer  to 
these  charges  was,  that  the  money  was  contributed  to  the  end 
that  the  cities  of  the  league  should  be  protected  against  the 
Persians,  and  that  so  long  as  the  Athenians  kept  the  enemy  at  a 
distance  they  had  a  right  to  use  the  money  as  they  pleased. 

Strength  and  Weakness  of  the  Athenian  Empire. —Under 
Pericles  Athens  had  become  the  most  powerful  naval  state  in  the 
world.     In  one  of  his  last  speeches,^  made  soon  after  the  outbreak 

i  The  so-called  "  Funeral  Oration  "  ;  see  p.  286. 


STRENGTH  AND   WEAKNESS  OF   THE  EMPIRE.        IGl 

of  the  Peloponnesian  War,  in  which  he  recounts  the  resources  of 
the  Athenian  empire,  Pericles  says  to  his  fellow-citizens  :  "  There 
is  not  now  a  king,  there  is  not  any  nation  in  the  universal  world, 
able  to  withstand  that  navy  which  at  this  juncture  you  can  launch 
out  to  sea." 

And  this  was  no  empty  boast.  The  earlier  empires  of  the 
Orient  that  once  had  held  wide  dominion  had  long  since  fallen, 
and  the  later  Medo-Persian  power  which  had  arisen  upon  their 
ruins,  and  which  at  the  opening  of  the  fifth  century  p..c.  was 
threatening  to  extend  its  authority  over  the  world,  had  been 
checked  in  its  insolent  advance  by  Hellenic  valor  and  discipline, 
so  that  at  this  time  there  was  no  power  in  the  East  that  the 
Athenians  need  fear.  In  the  West,  Rome  had  not  yet  risen  into 
prominence,  and  Carthage  was  barely  able  to  contend  upon 
equal  terms  with  the  Greek  cities  of  Sicily.  Beyond  question 
the  Hellenes  were  at  this  moment  the  leading  race  in  the  world ; 
and  Athens,  notwithstanding  the  limitations  placed  upon  her 
ambition  by  the  terms  of  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce,  was  the  real 
head  of  Hellas.  She  had  extended  her  dominion  over  a  large 
part  of  the  Greek  cities,  and  it  was  but  natural  that  the  more 
sanguine  of  her  citizens  should  believe  that  she  was  destined  to 
rule  over  all. 

But  the  most  significant  feature  of  this  new  imperial  power  was 
the  combination  of  vast  material  resources  with  the  most  imposing 
display  of  intellectual  resources  that  the  world  had  ever  seen. 
Never  before  had  there  been  such  a  union  of  the  material  and 
the  intellectual  elements  of  civilization  at    the  seat    of  empire.^ 

1  "  The  average  ability  of  the  Athenian  race  [was] ,  on  the  lowest  possible  esti-  \ 
mate,  very  nearly  two  grades  higher  than  our  own;  that  is,  about  as  much  as  o\xx ^• 
race  is  above  that  of  the  African  negro.  This  estimate,  which  may  seem  prodigious 
to  some,  is  confirmed  by  the  quick  intelligence  and  high  culture  of  the  Athenian 
commonalty,  before  whom  hterary  works  were  recited,  and  works  of  art  exhibited 
of  a  far  more  severe  character  than  could  possibly  be  appreciated  by  the  average  of 
our  race,  the  calibre  of  whose  intellect  is  easily  gauged  by  a  glance  at  the  contents 
of  a  railway  bookstall."  —  Galton,  Hereditary  Genius,  p.  342  (2d  Am.  ed.,  1887)  ; 
quoted  by  Kidd,  Social  Evolution,  ch.  ix. 


268  THE  AGE    OF  PERICLES. 

Literature  and  art  had  been  carried  to  the  utmost  perfection 
possible  to  human  genius.  Art  was  represented  by  the  inimi- 
table creations  of  Pheidias  and  Polygnotus,  while'  the  drama  was 
illustrated  by  the  incomparable  tragedies  of  ^schylus,  Sophocles, 
and  Euripides.' 

But  there  were  elements  of  weakness  in  the  splendid  imperial 
structure.  The  Athenian  empire  was  destined  to  be  short-lived 
because  the  principles  upon  which  it  rested  were  in  opposition 
to  the  deepest  instinct  of  the  Greek  race,  —  to  that  sentiment 
of  local  patriotism  which  invested  each  individual  city  with  polit- 
ical sovereignty.  Athens  had  disregarded  this  feeling.  Pericles 
himself  acknowledged  that  in  the  hands  of  the  Athenians,  sover- 
eignty had  run  out  into  a  sort  of  tyranny.  The  so-called  confed- 
erates were  the  slaves  of  Athens.  To  her  they  paid  tribute.  To 
her  courts  they  were  dragged  for  trial.  ^  Naturally  the  subject 
cities  of  her  empire  regarded  Athens  as  the  destroyer  of  Hellenic 
liberties,  and  watched  impatiently  for  the  first  favorable  moment 
to  revolt,  and  throw  off  the  hateful  yoke  that  she  had  imposed 
upon  them.  Hence  the  Athenian  empire  rested  upon  a  founda- 
tion of  quicksand. 

Had  Athens,  instead  of  enslaving  her  confederates  of  the  Delian 
League,  only  been  able  to  find  out  some  way  of  retaining  them 
as  allies  in  an  equal  union,  —  a  great  and  perhaps  impossible  task 
under  the  then  conditions  of  the  Hellenic  world,  —  as  head  of 
the  federated  Greek  race  she  might  have  secured  for  Hellas  the 
sovereignty  of  the  Mediterranean,  and  the  history  of  Rome  might 
have  ended  with  the  first  century  of  the  Republic. 

Furthermore,  there  were  elements  of  weakness  within  the  Athe- 
nian democracy  itself.  Greatly  as  Pericles  had  exalted  Athens, 
and  vastly  as  he  had  extended  her  reputation,  still  by  some  of 


1  For  short  notices  of  the  lives  and  works  of  these  artists  and  poets,  see  further 
on,  chs.  xxviii.  and  xxix. 

2  The  subject  cities  were  allowed  to  maintain  only  their  lower  courts  of  justice ; 
all  cases  of  importance,  as  we  have  seen  (p.  263),  were  carried  to  Athens,  and  there 
decided  in  the  Attic  tribunals. 


STRENGTH  AND   WEAKNESS  OF   THE  EMPIRE.        269 

his  measures  he  had  sown  the  seeds  of  future  evils.  In  his  system 
of  payment  for  the  most  common  public  services,  and  of  wholesale 
public  largesses  and  gratuities,  he  had  introduced  or  encouraged 
practices  that  had  the  same  demoralizing  effects  upon  the  Athenians 
that  the  free  distribution  of  corn  at  Rome  at  a  later  time  had  upon 
the  Roman  populace.  These  pernicious  customs  cast  discredit 
upon  labor,  destroyed  frugality,  and  fostered  idleness,  thus  sapping 
the  virtues  and  strength  of  the  Athenian  democracy. 

Illustrations  of  these  weaknesses,  as  well  as  of  the  strength  of 
the  Athenian  empire,  will  be  afforded  by  the  great  struggle  between 
Athens  and  Sparta  known  as  the  Peloponnesian  War,  the  causes 
and  chief  incidents  of  which  we  shall  next  rehearse. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Life  of  Pericles.  Abbott,  Pericles  and  the  Golden 
Age  of  Athens  (Heroes  of  the  Nation),  chs,  x.-xviii.  Grant,  Greece,  in  the  Age 
of  Pericles  (University  Series).  The  first  half  of  the  book  is  devoted  to  a 
review  of  Athenian  history  before  the  time  of  Pericles.  Curtius,  History  of 
Greece,  vol.  ii.  pp.  460-641.  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol. 
iv.  pp.  438-533;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  v.  pp.  352-407;  ib.  vol.  vi.  pp. 
1-50.  Cox,  The  Athenian  Empire ;  and  Lives  of  Greek  Statesmen  :  "  Ephi- 
altes"  and  "  Perikles." 


270  THE  IMMEDIATE   CAUSES   OF   THE    WAR, 


Part    Fourth. 

THE    PELOPONNESIAN    WAR, 

(431-404   B.C.) 

CHAPTER   XVII. 

THE   IMMEDIATE  CAUSES   OF  THE   WAR:    TROUBLES  AT 
CORCYRA  AND   POTID^A. 

Introductory.  —  Before  the  end  of  the  hfe  of  Pericles  the  grow- 
ing jealousy  between  Ionian  Athens  and  Dorian  Sparta  and  her 
allies  broke  out  in  the  long  and  calamitous  struggle  known  as  the 
Peloponnesian  War,  to  which  we  have  already  made  frequent  allu- 
sion. Pericles  had  foreseen  the  coming  storm :  "  I  descry  war," 
said  he,  "  lowering  from  the  Peloponnesus."  He  saw  clearly  that 
the  deep-seated  jealousies  and  the  opposed  political  principles  of 
the  two  rival  states  must  sooner  or  later,  in  spite  of  truces  and 
treaties,  bring  them  to  a  final  trial  of  strength  for  sole  leadership 
in  Greece.  His  whole  later  policy  looked  toward  the  preparation 
of  Athens  for  the  "  irrepressible  conflict." 

Quarrel  between  Corinth  and  Corcyra  respecting  Epidamnus 
(435-432  B.C.).  —  One  immediate  cause  of  the  war  was  the  inter- 
ference of  Athens,  on  the  side  of  the  Corcyraeans,  in  a  quarrel 
between  them  and  their  mother  city  Corinth.  The  real  root  of 
this  trouble  between  Corinth  and  Corcyra  was  mercantile  rivalry. 
Both  were  enterprising  commercial  cities,  and  both  wished  to  con- 


COR CYR ALAN  AND   CORINTHIAN  ENVOYS.  271 

trol  the  trade  of  the  islands  and  the  coast  towns  of  Western  Greece. 
But  it  was  some  question  touching  the  affairs  of  Epidamnus/  a 
city  on  the  Illyrian  coast  which  had  been  founded  by  the  joint 
enterprise  of  the  Corcyraeans  and  Corinthians,  that  brought  matters 
to  a  crisis.  The  Corcyraeans  offered  to  refer  the  matter  in  dispute 
to  mutually  approved  Peloponnesian  states,  or  to  Delphi,  for  arbi- 
tration, but  the  Corinthians  would  not  assent  to  the  proposal. 
War  followed.  In  a  naval  battle,  the  Corinthians  were  worsted, 
and  many  of  their  ships  destroyed  (435  B.C.).  Their  victory  gave 
the  Corcyraeans  control  of  the  Ionian  Sea,  and  they  spent  a  great 
part  of  the  summer  after  the  battle  in  cruising  about  the  waters  to 
the  west  of  Greece,  robbing  the  merchant-ships  and  annoying  the 
coast  settlements  of  the  Corinthians  and  their  allies.^ 

The  Corcyrsean  and  Corinthian  Envoys  at  Athens.  —  The 
Corinthians  now  gave  themselves  for  the  space  of  two  years  to  the 
work  of  building  a  new  navy,  with  the  resolve  of  avenging  them- 
selves and  their  allies  upon  the  Corcyraeans. 

Alarmed  at  the  extent  of  the  preparations  being  made  for  their 
chastisement,  the  Corcyraeans  resolved  to  ask  Athens  for  admission 
to  the  Athenian  league,  for  up  to  this  time  they  had  held  aloof 
from  both  the  rival  confederacies  of  Athens  and  Sparta.  Accord- 
ingly they  sent  an  embassy  to  the  Athenians  to  entreat  their 
alliance  and  assistance.  When  the  Corinthians  heard  of  the 
commission,  they  likewise  sent  envoys  to  Athens  to  dissuade  the 
Athenians  from  granting  the  petition  of  the  Corcyraeans.  The 
Athenians  gave  the  ambassadors  of  both  cities  a  hearing.^ 

1  Later,  Dyrrachium. 

2  Thucyd.  i.  24-30. 

3  Respecting  the  speeches  which  Thucydides  introduces  so  frequently  in  his 
narrative,  he  himself  says :  "  As  to  the  speeches  which  were  made  either  before  or 
during  the  war,  it  was  hard  for  me,  and  for  others  who  reported  them  to  me,  to 
recollect  the  exact  words.  I  have  therefore  put  into  the  mouth  of  each  speaker  the 
sentiments  proper  to  the  occasion,  expressed  as  I  thought  he  would  be  likely  to. 
express  them,  while  at  the  same  time  I  endeavored,  as  nearly  as  I  could,  to  give  the 
general  purport  of  what  was  actually  said."  (Jowett's  Thucydides,  i.  15.)  We 
shall  give  only  the  substance  of  these  speeches  —  simply  enough  to  indicate  the 
drift  of  the  arguments  of  the:  several  speakers. 


272  THE   IMMEDIATE    CAUSES   OF   THE    WAR. 

The  Corcyrsean  envoys  admitted  at  the  outset  that  the  poHcy 
hitherto  followed  by  them  not  to  enter  into  alliances  with  other 
states  through  fear  that  they  might  thus  be  drawn  into  wars  that 
did  not  concern  themselves,  was  unwise  and  short-sighted,  inasmuch 
as  in  times  of  danger,  such  as  the  present,  this  policy  left  them 
isolated,  and  weak  to  repel  aggression.  But  they  begged  the 
Athenians  to  overlook  their  "  indolent  neutrality,  which  was  an 
error  but  not  a  crime,"  and  to  lend  them  aid  against  the  Corin- 
thians, who,  having  first  wronged  them,  were  now  oppressing  them. 

They  represented  to  the  Athenians  that  by  admitting  them  to 
their  alliance  and  undertaking  their  defense,  they  would  make 
them  their  everlasting  and  grateful  friends  —  and  they  had  a  strong 
navy.  This  last  point,  that  the  Athenians  would  be  acquiring 
helpful  as  well  as  grateful  friends,  the  envoys  particularly  pressed 
upon  the  attention  of  the  Athenians. 

Anticipating  that  the  Corinthians  would  deprecate  Athenian 
interference  on  the  ground  that  Corcyra  was  a  colony  of  theirs, 
and  that  strangers  should  not  come  between  the  mother  and  her 
daughter,  the  envoys  said  that  the  Corinthians  should  "  be  made 
to  understand  that  all  colonies  honor  their  mother  city  when  she 
treats  them  well,  but  are  estranged  from  her  by  injustice.  For 
colonies  are  not  meant  to  be  the  servants  but  the  equals  of  those 
who  remain  at  home."  ^  To  show  that  they  had  been  treated 
unjustly,  they  told  how  their  offer  to  refer  the  matter  in  dispute  to 
arbitrators  had  been  rejected  by  the  Corinthians  (p.  271). 

As  to  the  treaty  obligations  between  Sparta  and  Athens,  the 
envoys  maintained  that  the  Athenians  would  be  violating  none  of 
these  in  admitting  them  to  their  alliance  ;  for  the  last  treaty  ^  made 
provision  for  just  such  cases  as  the  present,  expressly  providing 
that  any  city  which  at  that  time  was  a  member  of  neither  the 
Spartan  nor  the  Athenian  confederacy  might  join  either  at  will. 

1  Thucyd.  i.  33.  The  quotations  from  Thucydides  in  this  and  the  following 
chapters  that  deal  with  the  Peloponnesian  War  are  uniformly  from  Jowett's 
translation. 

2  The  treaty  referred  to  is  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce.     See  p.  251. 


GREECE 

in  the 

Fifth  Century  B.C. 

Lacedcemonian  Possessions  &  Allies    I        I 
Athenian  Possessions  &  Allies  I        I 

21  , » ,  22 

U m—m m •-• • «  «  «     •  »  »  .  


'^ 


8TRUTHER8  A  CO.'N.' 


5 :  '! 


CORCYRMAN  AND    CORINTHIAN  ENVOYS.  273 

Then  the  envoys,  recurring  to  the  argument  of  the  advantage 
to  Athens  of  an  aUiance  with  a  maritime  power  Hke  Corcyra, 
reminded  the  Athenians  that  Corcyra,  being  a  sort  of  half-way 
station  between  Italy  and  Greece,  would  be  of  great  importance  to 
Athens  in  case  the  western  cities  should  ever  become  the  allies  of 
the  Lacedaemonians,  since  the  Corcyraeans  could  give  aid  to  an 
Athenian  fleet  on  its  way  to  Italy,  or  block  the  passage  of  a  hostile 
fleet  sailing  thence  for  Greece.  They  finally  summed  up  their 
speech  in  these  words  :  ''  Hellas  has  only  three  considerable  navies  : 
there  is  ours,  and  there  is  yourS,  and  there  is  the  Corinthian. 
Now  if  the  Corinthians  get  hold  of  ours,  and  you  allow  the  two  to 
become  one,  you  will  have  to  fight  against  the  united  navies  of 
Corcyra  and  the  Peloponnesus.  But  if  you  make  us  your  allies, 
you  will  have  our  navy  in  addition  to  your  own  ranged  at  your  side 
in  the  impending  conflict."  ^ 

The  envoys  from  Corcyra  having  thus  spoken,  those  from 
Corinth  were  given  an  opportunity  to  present  their  side  of  the 
controversy.  First,  they  touched  upon  what  they  claimed  was  the 
real  motive  of  the  Corcyraeans  in  hitherto  holding  themselves  aloof 
from  all  aUiances  —  "  they  did  not  want  to  have  an  ally  who  might 
go  and  tell  of  their  crimes  "  ;  for  they  represented  the  Corcyraeans 
as  being  little  better  than  pirates.  As  to  their  complaint  of  ill- 
usage,  there  was  nothing  in  it.  The  Corinthians  had  always 
treated  their  colonies  well,  which  was  proved  by  the  fact  that  "  no 
city  was  more  beloved  by  her  colonies  than  Corinth." 

As  to  the  offer  of  arbitration  to  which  the  Corcyraeans  had 
referred,  that,  the  speakers  maintained,  was  all  a  pretense.  It  was 
not  made  until  after  they  had  become  frightened  by  the  prepara- 
tions which  the  Corinthians  were  making  to  punish  them  as  they 
deserved. 

But  there  were  special  reasons,  the  Corinthians  went  on  to  say, 
why  Athens,  no  matter  what  might  be  the  circumstances  of  this 
quarrel  between  them  and  the  Corcyraeans,  should  not  accede  to 
the  petition  of  the  latter.     In  the  first  place,  she  would  be  break- 

1  Thucyd.  i,  36. 


274  THE  IMMEDIATE    CAUSES   OF   THE    WAR. 

ing  the  treaty.  The  provision  referred  to  by  the  Corcyraeans, 
which  gave  to  cities  outside  the  leagues  permission  to  join  either 
at  will,  did  not  have  in  view  cities  which  might  seek  enrollment 
that  they  might  thereby  be  enabled  to  injure  others.  In  the 
second  place,  such  action  on  the  part  of  Athens  would  make 
Corinth  her  enemy  and  lead  straight  on  to  war  between  the  two 
cities.  In  the  third  place,  when  the  subjects  of  Athens  revolted  at 
Samos,  the  Corinthians  had  maintained  the  principle  "  that  every 
one  should  be  allowed  to  chastise  his  own  allies,"  and  had  thereby 
prevented  outside  interference  in  Athenian  affairs ;  now  the 
Athenians  should  make  returns  to  them  for  this  service.^  More- 
over, the  principle  that  the  Corinthians  at  that  time  maintained 
was  one  in  the  maintenance  of  which  as  Hellenic  law  the 
Athenians  above  all  others  were  interested.  In  the  fourth  place, 
the  envoys  still  urged,  Athens  owed  the  Corinthians  a  debt  of 
gratitude,  which  she  ought  now  to  discharge  in  a  substantial  way, 
for  the  twenty  ships  they  loaned  her  when  she  was  in  the  midst  of 
her  trouble  with  ^gina.^  They  had  now  shown  the  Athenians,  so 
the  envoys  concluded,  what  course  was  right  and  just.  They 
should  not  choose  expediency  instead  of  justice,  "  for  the  true 
expediency  is  the  path  of  right."  ^ 

The  Athenians  resolve  to  form  a  Defensive  Alliance  with  the 
Corcyraeans. —  After  the  Corinthian  envoys  had  made  their  speech, 
the  Athenians,  having  now  listened  to  what  each  side  had  to  say, 
took  the  matter  under  consideration.  They  seemed  to  realize  the 
grave  importance  of  the  step  that  they  were  urged  by  the  Corcy- 
raeans to  take ;  but  after  some  wavering  they  resolved  to  enter 
into  a  defensive  league  with  them.  They  would  not  enter  into  an 
offensive  alliance,  for  the  reason  that  this  might  require  them  to 
aid  the  Corcyraeans  in  an  attack  on  Corinth,  and  that  would  be  a 
plain  violation  of  the  treaty  with  the  Spartan  confederacy. 

The  motive  of  the  Athenians  for  entering  into  this  alliance  was 

1  See  p.  258. 

2  See  p.  160. 

3  Thucyd.  i.  42;  for  the  whole  conference,  31-43. 


THE  BATTLE    OF  SYBOTA.  275 

to  prevent  any  accession  to  the  naval  power  of  Corinth  by  her 
possible  acquisition  of  the  fleet  of  the  Corcyraeans,  and  to  make 
sure  of  Corcyra  as  an  important  station  and  watch-post  on  the 
route  to  Italy.  In  all  this,  the  Athenians  were  of  course  looking 
forward  to  the  war  with  the  Peloponnesians,  which  they  saw  to  be 
coming  on  apace. 

The  Battle  of  Sybota  (432  b.c).  —  In  accordance  with  the 
new  alliance,  the  Athenians  sent  to  Corcyra  ten  ships,  with  strict 
orders  to  their  commanders,  however,  to  act  only  in  the  defense 
of  Corcyra  and  her  possessions.  These  ships,  like  the  Athenian 
contingents  in  the  Ionian  army  that  burned  Sardis  (p.  143),  were 
fated  to  bring  great  woes  upon  Athens  and  all  the  other  Greek 
cities. 

The  Corinthians  soon  collected  a  fleet  of  a  hundred  and  fifty 
ships,  which  embraced  contingents  from  several  of  their  allies,  and 
sailing  against  Corcyra,  cast  anchor  at  a  promontory  on  the  main- 
land opposite  the  northern  point  of  the  island.  The  Corcyraeans, 
with  a  hundred  and  ten  ships,  put  out  to  meet  them,  being  ac- 
companied by  the  Athenian  vessels.  The  two  navies,  according 
to  Thucydides,  were  the  largest  that  the  Greeks  had  ever  gathered 
to  fight  one  another. 

An  obstinate  battle  took  place  (battle  of  Sybota,  432  B.C.). 
The  Athenians  refrained  at  first  from  taking  an  active  part  in  the 
engagement,  simply  relieving  a  Corcyraean  ship  when  hard  pressed, 
or  placing  themselves  in  the  way  of  the  Corinthian  galleys. 
Finally,  however,  the  Corcyraeans  having  begun  to  flee,  the  Athe- 
nians took  a  hand  in  the  fight.  But  both  the  Athenians  and  their 
allies  were  driven  to  the  Corcyraean  shores. 

Here  they  collected  the  ships  still  sea-worthy  and  again  put 
out  to  ofler  the  Corinthians  battle.  Just  as  the  engagement  was 
about  to  begin,  twenty  vessels  which  the  Athenians  had  sent  to 
strengthen  the  original  little  squadron  of  ten,  appeared  in  sight. 
Seeing  them,  the  Corinthians  retreated  to  the  mainland,  and,  after 
exchanging  some  words  with  the  Athenians,  set  sail  for  home. 
They  carried  with  them  a  thousand  prisoners,   of  whom    eight 


276  THE   IMMEDIATE    CAUSES   OF   THE    WAR. 

hundred  were  sold  as  slaves,  while  the  remainder,  many  of  whom 
were  influential  citizens  of  Corcyra,  were  held  in  a  sort  of  hon- 
orable captivity,  the  intention  of  the  Corinthians  being  to  use 
them  in  effecting  a  revolution  in  the  island  in  the  interest  of 
Corinth. 

"Thus  the  war  ended  to  the  advantage  of  Corcyra,  and  the 
Athenian  fleet  returned  home.  This  was  the  first  among  the 
causes  of  the  Peloponnesian  War,  the  Corinthians  alleging  that 
the  Athenian  fleet  had  taken  part  with  the  Corcyraeans  and  had 
fought  against  them  in  defiance  of  the  treaty."  ^ 

The  Revolt  of  Potidaea  (432  b.c).  —  The  second  immediate 
cause  of  the  Peloponnesian  War  was  another  collision  between  the 
Athenians  and  the  Corinthians  on  the  opposite  side  of  Greece,  at 
Potidaea,  which  was  situated  on  the  peninsula  uniting  Pallene  with 
the  Macedonian  shore.  It  was  the  affair  at  Corcyra  that  precip- 
itated the  trouble  here. 

Potidaea  was  a  Corinthian  colony,  which,  without  giving  up  its 
relations  to  its  mother  city,  had  become  a  member  of  the  Athenian 
league.  It  received  each  year  magistrates  sent  out  from  Corinth, 
and  paid  tribute  to  Athens.  This  double  relation,  after  the 
Corinthians  and  Athenians  had  come  to  blows  in  the  western 
sea,  was  sure  to  create  trouble  here.  The  Athenians,  fearing 
that  the  Corinthians  would  incite  the  city  to  revolt,  ordered  the 
Potidaeans  to  demolish  a  portion  of  their  walls,  to  give  hostages 
as  a  pledge  of  faithfulness,  and  to  send  home  the  Corinthian 
officials. 

The  circumstances  doubtless  justified  the  Athenians  in  taking 
these  precautions  to  forestall  rebellion.  Not  only  were  the 
Corinthians  angry  and  resentful,  but  Perdiccas,  the  king  of  Mace- 
donia, was  now  hostile  to  Athens,  and  all  her  Chalcidian  tribu- 
taries were  watchful  of  an  opportunity  to  revolt.  An  uprising  at 
Potidaea  might  incite  rebellion  throughout  all  the  Thracian  region, 
and  the  large  interests  of  Athens  in  those  lands  and  seas  be 
destroyed  at  a  blow. 

1  Thucyd.  i.  55. 


MEETING  AT  SPARTA.  277 

But  the  Potidaeans  could  not  be  expected  to  submit  without 
protest  and  resistance  to  the  demands  of  the  Athenians.  They 
sent  envoys  to  Athens  to  secure  if  possible  a  revocation  of  the 
orders  that  had  been  given  the  Athenian  admirals  respecting 
Potidaea ;  and  at  the  same  time,  since  they  had  but  little  hope 
in  the  embassy  to  the  Athenians,  sent  other  envoys  to  Sparta  to 
ask  aid  against  their  oppressors.  The  embassy  to  Athens  was 
fruitless ;  but  the  Spartans  promised  the  Potidaeans  to  interfere 
in  their  behalf  if  the  Athenians  attacked  them. 

Emboldened  by  this  promise  of  aid  from  the  Peloponnesus,  the 
Potidaeans  revolted,  and  persuaded  many  of  the  Chalcidian  towns 
to  do  Hkewise.  Meanwhile  the  Corinthians  had  sent  to  the  assist- 
ance of  Potidaea  a  considerable  marine  and  land  force,  made  up 
largely  of  volunteers  not  only  from  Corinth  but  from  various  states 
of  the  Peloponnesus.  The  Athenians  defeated  the  alUed  Pelopon- 
nesians  and  Potidaeans  in  a  battle  fought  near  Potidaea,  and,  driv- 
ing the  fugitives  within  the  walls  of  the  city,  blockaded  the  place 
by  land  and  sea.^ 

Meeting  at  Sparta  (432  b.c).  —  Such  was  the  situation  when 
the  Corinthians,  seconded  by  the  Megarians  and  ^ginetans,  who 
had  each  their  own  causes  of  complaint  against  Athens,  appealed 
to  Sparta,  as  the  head  of  the  Peloponnesian  league,  for  aid  and 
justice.  The  Spartans  hereupon  sent  out  invitations  to  the  effect 
that  any  of  their  allies  who  had  charges  to  prefer  against  Athens 
should  send  envoys  to  Sparta  at  a  stated  time. 

The  envoys  having  arrived,  they  were  given  in  turn  an  opportu- 
nity to  state  their  grievances  before  the  Spartan  popular  assembly. 

The  complaint  of  the  Megarians  was  that  the  Athenians,  in  vio- 
lation of  the  treaty,  had  excluded  them  from  all  Attic  ports  and 
markets.  The  ^Eginetans,  through  fear,  did  not  make  any  public 
accusation  against  Athens,  but  they  caused  it  to  be  understood 
that  she  had  virtually  reduced  them  to  a  state  of  slavery. 

Others  stated  their  wrongs,  and  then  the  Corinthians  made  a 
scolding  speech  in  which  they  roundly  lectured  the  Spartans  for 

1  Thucyd.  i.  56-65. 


278  THE  IMMEDIATE    CAUSES   OF  THE    WAR. 

being  so  blind  to  what  was  going  on  around  them,  for  their  neglect 
of  their  allies,  and  for  their  dilatoriness  when  the  situation  de- 
manded prompt  action.  They  even  laid  the  blame  for  the 
enslavement  of  many  once  free  cities  by  Athens  at  their  door : 
"for  the  true  enslaver  of  a  people,"  they  reasoned,  "is  he  who 
can  put  an  end  to  their  slavery  but  has  no  care  to  do  it ;  and  all 
the  more,  if  he  be  reputed  the  champion  of  liberty  [among 
them]." 

They  then  contrasted  the  slowness  and  conservatism  of  the 
Spartans  with  the  alertness  and  enterprise  of  the  Athenians,  with 
whom  to  conceive  was  to  execute,  who  were  "  always  abroad," 
while  the  Spartans  were  "always  at  home,"  and  to  whom  idleness 
was  "as  disagreeable  as  the  most  tiresome  business."  They  told 
the  Spartans  that  they  must  give  up  their  "  old-fashioned  "  notions, 
adopt  the  new  Hellenic  ways,  and  bestir  themselves,  if  they  wished 
to  retain  that  position  of  leadership  among  the  Peloponnesians 
which  they  had  inherited  from  their  ancestors.^ 

After  the  Corinthians  had  thus  spoken,  some  Athenian  envoys, 
who  chanced  to  be  present  at  Sparta,  asked  permission  to  address 
the  assembly.  They  made  no  attempt  to  reply  to  the  accusations 
that  had  been  brought  against  Athens,  thinking  that  the  Spartan 
assembly  was  not  the  proper  tribunal  for  the  hearing  of  such 
matters,  and  also  because  there  is  no  answer  to  be  made  to  mere 
invective,  but  simply  reminded  the  assembly  of  the  services  that 
Athens  had  rendered  all  the  Greeks  in  the  Persian  Wars,  how  they 
alone  beat  back  the  barbarians  at  Marathon,  and  how  at  Salamis, 
when  they  had  no  longer  any  city  of  their  own  to  save,  they 
fought  to  save  those  of  their  allies.  They  maintained  that  the 
Athenian  empire  was  not  a  conquest,  but  a  growth ;  it  had  arisen 
out  of  the  circumstances  of  the  struggle  between  the  Hellenes  and 
the  barbarians.  The  Athenians  had  nursed  the  growth,  to  be 
sure,  but  they  should  not  be  reviled  for  that.  "  An  empire  was 
offered  us,"  said  the  envoys  ;  "  can  you  wonder  that,  acting  as 
human  nature  always  will,  we  accepted  it  and  refused  to  give  it 

1  Thucyd.  i.  68-71. 


THE   SPARTANS  AT  DELPHI.  219 

Up  again,  constrained  by  three  all-powerful  motives,  —  ambition, 
fear,  and  interest.  We  are  not  the  first  that  have  aspired  to  rule  ; 
the  world  has  ever  held  that  the  weaker  must  be  kept  down  by  the 
stronger." 

The  envoys  then  proceeded  to  say  that  the  Athenians  were 
worthy  of  power,  and  that  they  had  not  exercised  it  with  unnec- 
essary harshness,  certainly  not  as  tyrannically  as  the  Spartans 
would  have  used  it.  They  concluded  by  admonishing  the  Spar- 
tans not  to  hurry,  at  the  instigation  of  Athens'  enemies,  into  a  war 
of  which  no  one  could  foresee  the  issue.^ 

When  the  speaking  of  the  various  deputies  was  at  an  end,  the 
Spartans  dismissed  them  with  all  the  other  strangers,  and  in 
secret  the  popular  assembly  deliberated  upon  the  complaints 
of  their  alUes.  The  king  Archidamus,  a  man  of  wide  experience 
and  sound  judgment,  earnestly  advised  the  Spartans  not  to  enter 
into  a  war  with  Athens.  He  had  seen  too  much  of  war  to  have  any 
desire  to  see  more.  Athens,  he  said,  was  superior  to  Sparta  in 
wealth  and  in  her  navy.  Sparta  might  be  superior  in  her  army, 
but  land  forces  could  not  reach  any  considerable  part  of  the 
possessions  of  the  Athenians,  whose  empire  was  a  maritime 
empire,  and  ope  that  reached  out  to  remote  lands.  He  advised 
therefore  that  they  take  ample  time  to  think  about  the  matter, 
and  that,  before  having  recourse  to  arms,  although  they  should 
be  making  preparations  for  war,  they  try  remonstrance  and 
arbitration.^ 

The  moderate  and  sensible  counsel  of  Archidamus  was  opposed 
by  the  ephor  Sthenelaidas.  The  substance  of  his  speech  was 
that  Sparta  ought  to  stand  by  her  allies.  He  assumed  that  they 
were  being  ill-treated  by  Athens. 

The  ephor  then  put  the  question  to  the  assembly  for  a  decision. 
The  assembly  decided  that  Athens  had  broken  the  treaty. 

The  Spartans  at  Delphi :  the  Peloponnesians  vote  for  War.  — 
Before  proceeding  further,  the  Spartans  sent  to  Delphi  to  inquire 
of  the  god  what  would  be  the  issue  of  a  war  with  Athens.  They 
1  Thucyd.  i.  72-78.  2  Thucyd,  i.  79-85. 


280  THE   IMMEDIATE    CAUSES   OF   THE    WAR. 

are  said  to  have  received  for  an  answer  that  "  they  would  gain  the 
victory,  if  they  would  fight  with  all  their  might,"  and  that  the  god 
himself,  "whether  invited  or  uninvited,"  would  help. 

An  assembly  of  the  allies  of  Sparta  was  now  called  for  the 
purpose  of  deciding  by  the  vote  of  all  whether  or  not  the  war 
should  be  undertaken.  The  Corinthians  had  been  busy  among 
the  various  cities  kindling  a  war  spirit,  and  at  the  meeting  also 
their  deputies  fanned  the  flame.  The  sum  of  what  they  said  was 
this :  "  The  tyrant  which  has  been  set  up  in  Hellas  is  a  standing 
menace  to  us  all  alike ;  she  rules  over  some  of  us  already,  and 
would  fain  rule  over  others.  Let  us  attack  and  subdue  her,  that 
we  may  ourselves  live  safely  for  the  future  and  deliver  the 
Hellenes  whom  she  has  enslaved."' 

A  majority  of  the  states  represented  in  the  convention  voted 
for  a  united  attack  upon  Athens ;  and  the  following  year  was  spent 
in  making  preparations  for  war. 

Embassies  between  Sparta  and  Athens.  —  While  preparations 
for  hostilities  were  being  made,  embassies  were  passing  back  and 
forth  between  Sparta  and  Athens.  First,  the  Spartans  sent  an 
embassy  to  Athens  demanding  that  they  "  drive  out  the  curse  of 
the  goddess."  By  this  they  meant  that  the  Athenians  should 
expel  the  Alcmaeonidae,  upon  whom  they  professed  to  believe  that 
the  curse  of  Cylon  still  rested  (p.  107).  Now  this  was  an  at- 
tempt, under  the  pretext  of  zeal  for  religion,  to  discredit  Pericles  ; 
for  he  belonged  to  the  family  whose  exile  they  were  demanding. 

The  Athenians  replied  to  this  embassy  by  directing  the  Spartans 
to  purge  themselves  of  the  curse  that  was  cleaving  to  them  for  the 
murder  of  the  suppliant  Helots  taken  from  the  temple  of  Poseidon 
(p.  242),  and  also  of  that  which  was  upon  them  for  the  death  of 
Pausanias  in  the  precincts  of  the  temple  of  Athena  of  the  Brazen 
House  (p.  238). 

After  this,  another  embassy  came  from  Sparta,  ordering  the 
Athenians  to  restore  to  Megara  the  privileges  of  the  Athenian 
ports,  to  raise  the  siege  of  Potidaea,  and  to  give  back  to  ^Egina 
1  Thucyd.  i.  124. 


EMBASSIES  BETWEEN  SPARTA   AND   ATHENS        281 

her  independence.  The  Athenians  refused  to  do  any  of  these 
things. 

Still  a  third  embassy  came,  bearing  this  message  :  "  The  Lace- 
daemonians desire  to  maintain  peace,  and  peace  there  may  be 
if  you  will  restore  independence  to  the  Hellenes." 

Compliance  with  this  meant,  of  course,  the  dissolution  of  the 
Athenian  empire.  In  a  speech  before  the  popular  assembly  called 
to  frame  an  answer  to  these  extraordinary  demands,  Pericles 
reviewed  the  situation,  showed  the  Athenians  how  useless  it  was 
to  attempt  to  conciliate  their  enemies  by  concessions,  inspired 
them  with  confidence  in  their  affairs  by  pointing  out  the  elements 
of  strength  in  their  empire  and  the  sources  of  weakness  in  the 
Peloponnesian  confederacy,  and  brought  them  to  the  resolution  to 
give  the  Spartans  an  answer  which  in  substance  declared  the 
Athenians  to  be  ready  to  restore  independence  to  those  cities  of 
their  empire  which  were  free  at  the  time  of  the  treaty,  whenever 
Sparta  should  allow  the  cities  subject  to  her '  to  govern  them- 
selves in  their  own  way.  The  reply  further  represented  that  the 
Athenians  "  would  do  nothing  upon  compulsion,  but  were  ready 
to  settle  their  differences  by  arbitration  upon  fair  terms  according 
to  the  treaty."  ^  This  reply  of  the  Athenians  to  the  last  demands 
of  the  Spartans  put  an  end  to  all  further  embassies. 

Such  were  the  circumstances  under  which  Athens  and  the 
Peloponnesian s  drifted  into  war — •  into  a  war  that  was  fated  to 
distress  all  Greece  for  the  lifetime  of  a  generation,  and  to  bring 
to  utter  ruin  Athens  and  her  empire. 

References. — Jowett's  Thucydides,  bk.  i.  Embraces  some  matters  of  a 
general  introductory  nature  and  not  bearing  directly  on  the  subject  in  hand. 
Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  iii.  pp.  1-53-  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten 
volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp.  534-557;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  vi.  pp.  50-75. 

1  Thucyd.  i.  145. 


282  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

FROM  THE   BEGINNING   OF  THE   WAR  TO  THE   PEACE  OF 
NICIAS.i 

(431-421  B.C.) 

The  Beginning :  Attack  upon  Plataea  by  the  Thebans 
(431  B.C.).  —  The  first  act  in  the  long  and  terrible  drama  was 
enacted  at  night,  within  the  walls  of  Plataea.  This  city,  though  in 
Bceotia,  was,  as  we  have  seen,  under  the  protection  of  Athens,  and 
would  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  Boeotian  league. 

Anxious  to  get  possession  of  this  place  before  the  actual  outbreak 
of  the  war  which  they  saw  to  be  inevitable,  the  Thebans  planned 
its  surprise  and  capture.  Three  hundred  Thebans  gained  access 
to  the  unguarded  city  in  the  dead  of  night,  and,  marching  to  the 
public  square,  summoned  the  Platseans  to  exchange  the  Athenian 
for  a  Boeotian  alliance. 

The  Plataeans  were  upon  the  point  of  acceding  to  all  the  de- 
mands made  upon  them,  when,  discovering  the  small  number  of 
the  enemy,  they  attacked  and  overpowered  them  in  the  darkness, 
and    took    a   hundred    and   eighty  of    them    prisoners.     These 

1  The  war  is  usually  divided  into  three  periods,  as  follows :  i.  From  the 
beginning  to  the  Peace  of  Nicias  (431-421  B.C.),  often  designated  as  the  Ten 
Years'  War,  or  the  Attic  War,  from  the  frequent  invasions  of  Attica  by  the 
Peloponnesians ;  2.  From  the  Peace  of  Nicias  to  the  defeat  of  the  Sicilian 
Expedition  (421-413  B.C.)  ;  3.  From  the  Sicilian  disaster  to  the  dismantling  of  the 
defenses  of  Athens  (413-404  B.C.),  called  the  Decelean  War.  from  Decelea,  a 
stronghold  in  Attica  seized  and  held  by  the  Spartans  during  this  part  of  the 
struggle.  This  last  period  is  also  sometimes  called  the  Ionian  War,  because  so 
much  of  the  fighting  took  place  in  Ionia. 


THE  PELOPONNESIANS  INVADE  ATTICA.  283 

captives  they  afterwards  murdered,  in  violation,  as  the  Thebans 
always  maintained,  of  a  sacred  promise  that  their  lives  should 
be  spared. 

The  women  and  children  were  now  removed  from  Platsea 
to  Athens,  and  a  few  Athenian  troops  sent  thither  to  help  the 
Platseans  hold  the  place. 

This  wretched  affair  at  Plataea  precipitated  the  war  (431  B.C.). 
The  preparations  gn  either  side  were  now  pushed  forward  with 
increased  zeal  and  energy.  There  was  great  enthusiasm,  Thu- 
cydides  tells  us,  on  both  sides  of  the  Isthmus,  particularly  among 
the  young  men,  who,  unlike  King  Archidamus  of  Sparta  (p.  279), 
having  never  seen  war,  were  eager  for  its  new  experiences  and 
excitements. 

The  Peloponnesians  invade  and  ravage  Attica  (431  b.c). — 
As  soon  as  the  news  of  the  affair  at  Plataea  had  reached  Sparta,  all 
her  allies  were  at  once  summoned  to  send  their  contingents  in 
haste  to  the  Isthmus,  prepared  for  a  campaign  in  Attica.  A  great 
army  was  soon  collected  there,  under  the  command  of  the  Spartan 
king  Archidamus. 

Before  beginning  his  march  against  Athens,  Archidamus,  think- 
ing that  perhaps  the  Athenians  would  now,  upon  the  approach  of 
danger,  be  more  ready  to  grant  the  demands  of  the  Spartans,  sent 
a  herald  to  Athens.  The  Athenians,  who  had  made  a  public 
resolve  never  to  treat  with  their  enemies  while  in  arms,  would  not 
allow  the  herald  even  to  enter  the  gates  of  the  city,  and  told  him 
that  he  must  be  beyond  the  borders  of  Attica  before  night.  As  he 
crossed  the  frontier,  he  turned  to  the  Athenians  who  had  been  his 
escort  and  said  solemnly,  "  This  day  will  be  to  the  Hellenes  the 
beginning  of  great  sorrows."^ 

The  return  of  the  herald  thus  peremptorily  ordered  off  the  Athe- 
nian soil,  was  the  signal  for  the  march  of  the  Peloponnesian  army 
towards  the  Athenian  frontier. 

Meanwhile  Pericles,  carrying  out  the  general  plan  of  campaign 
that  had  been  resolved  upon  by  the  Athenians  under  his  advice, 

1  Thucyd.  ii.  12. 


284  BEGINNING  OF   WAR   TO   PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

had  gathered  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  villages,  towns/  and  scat- 
tered farm-houses  of  Attica,  within  the  walls  of  the  capital.  The 
people  brought  with  them  their  household  goods,  even  "the  wood- 
work of  their  homes."  Their  cattle  they  transported  to  Euboea 
and  other  places  of  safety.  Everything  that  could  not  be  carried 
away  was  abandoned  to  the  enemy. 

"The  removal  of  the  inhabitants,"  says  Thucydides,  "  was  pain- 
ful ;  for  the  Athenians  had  always  been  accustomed  to  reside  in  the 
country.  Such  a  life  had  been  characteristic  of  them  more  than  of 
any  other  Hellenic  people  from  very  remote  times."  ^  The  histo- 
rian explains  this  characteristic  by  telling  how  in  early  times  the 
people  lived  in  separate  communes,  and  thus  acquired  country 
habits  and  a  love  of  country  life,  which  they  retained  even  after 
they  were  united  into  one  great  city  by  Theseus. 

Some  of  the  immigrants  had  homes  of  their  own  within  the  city 
walls  ;  others  were  received  into  the  homes  of  relatives  or  friends  ; 
but  by  far  the  greater  part,  less  fortunate,  were  forced  to  seek  rest- 
ing-places on  unoccupied  lots,  in  the  temples  and  the  towers  of 
the  Long  Walls,  and  at  the  Peiraeus.  Even  a  vacant  spot  beneath 
the  Acropolis,  known  as  the  Pelasgian  ground,  upon  which  a  curse 
rested,  and  respecting  which  the  Delphian  oracle  had  said,  "  Better 
the  Pelasgian  ground  left  waste,"  was  occupied  in  the  emergency.^ 

Into  the  plain  thus  deserted,  as  it  had  been  a  generation  before 
at  the  time  of  the  Persian  invasion,  the  Peloponnesians  marched, 
just  at  the  season  when  the  grain  was  ripening,  and  as  they 
advanced  towards  Athens  ravaged  the  country  far  and  near. 
Even  the  barbarians  had  not  wasted  it  more  ruthlessly.  From 
the  walls  of  the  city  the  Athenians  could  see  the  flames  of  their 
burning  houses,  which  recalled  to  the  old  men  the  sight  they  had 
witnessed  from  the  island  of  Salamis  just  forty- nine  years  before. 

1  Some  of  the  so-called  townships  or  demes  embraced  large  towns.  Thus 
Acharnae  furnished  3000  heavy-armed  men  to  the  Athenian  army,  and  so  could  not 
have  had  a  free  population  of  less  than  8000  or  10,000. 

2ii.  15. 

8  Thucyd.  ii.  17. 


THE  ATHENIANS  SET  ASIDE  A   RESERVE.  285 

This  destruction  of  their  property  before  their  very  eyes  naturally 
frenzied  the  people,  and  they  began  to  upbraid  Pericles,  and  de- 
manded that  he  should  give  up  his  cowardly  policy  of  crouching  be- 
hind walls,  and  lead  the  army  out  to  meet  the  enemy  in  open  battle. 

Perceiving  that  the  people  were  beside  themselves  with  anger, 
Pericles  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  all  their  abuse,  and  refused  to  com- 
ply with  their  demands,  but  sent  out  bodies  of  cavalry  to  protect 
the  property  near  the  city  walls.  The  failure  of  provisions  finally 
compelled  the  Peloponnesians  to  withdraw  from  the  country. 
They  retreated  through  Boeotia,  and  from  the  Isthmus  the  con- 
tingents of  the  different  cities  scattered  to  their  homes. 

The  Athenians  set  aside  a  Reserve :  their  Fleet  harries  the 
Peloponnesian  and  other  Shores.  —  After  the  departure  of  the 
Peloponnesians,  the  Athenians  in  a  meeting  of  the  Ecclesia  voted 
to  set  aside  one  thousand  talents  of  the  treasure  in  the  Acropolis 
and  to  keep  a  reserve  of  a  hundred  triremes,  this  sum  of  money 
and  these  boats  to  be  used  only  in  case  of  an  attack  on  Athens  by 
sea.  Whoever  should  even  propose  to  use  the  money  thus  set 
aside  for  any  other  purpose  than  that  designated  was  to  be  put  to 
death. 

Before  the  withdrawal  of  the  Peloponnesian  army  from  Attica 
the  Athenians  had  sent  out  a  fleet  of  one  hundred  triremes  to  sail 
around  the  Peloponnesus  and  do  what  injury  it  could  along  the 
shores.  The  fleet  ravaged  the  shores  of  Laconia,  Messenia,  and 
Elis,  and  then,  strengthened  by  fifty  ships  from  Corcyra,  harassed 
the  Corinthian  colonies  along  the  Acarnanian  coast.  After  receiv- 
ing the  towns  of  the  island  of  Cephalenia  into  the  Athenian  alli- 
ance, the  fleet  returned  home. 

The  Athenians  had  also  sent  a  smaller  squadron  of  thirty  ships 
towards  the  north.  This  squadron  wasted  the  shores  of  Boeotia 
and  Locris.  Before  the  close  of  the  summer,  the  islet  of  Atalante, 
just  off  the  coast  of  Locris,  was  garrisoned  and  thus  made  a  sort 
of  watch-post  to  protect  Euboea  against  the  Locrian  pirates. 

They  expel  the  -^ginetans  and  ravage  Megara.  —  But  the 
most  important  measure  of  the  Athenians  during  the  first  summer 


286  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

of  the  war  was  the  expulsion  of  the  ^ginetans  from  their  island, 
on  account  of  the  part  they  had  taken  in  instigating  the  war 
(p.  277).  A  part  of  the  exiles  were  given  lands  by  their  friends 
the  Spartans  at  Thyrea,  a  place  on  the  frontier  of  Laconia  towards 
Argolis,  while  others  sought  new  homes  in  various  parts  of  Hellas. 
The  island  thus  cleared  of  its  population  was  occupied  by  Athenian 
settlers. 

The  only  land  expedition  undertaken  by  the  Athenians  during 
this  summer  was  one  under  the  lead  of  Pericles  into  the  territory 
of  the  Megarians,  which  was  ravaged.  As  this  expedition  did  not 
set  out  until  towards  the  close  of  the  season,  the  fleet  that  had 
been  coasting  around  the  Peloponnesus  and  was  now  returning 
home  was  able  to  join  it.  This  union  of  land  and  sea  forces  made 
this  army  of  invasion  the  largest,  Thucydides  asserts,  that  the 
Athenians  ever  had  "  in  one  place."  It  consisted  of  ten  thousand 
heavy-armed  men  besides  a  large  body  of  light-armed  troops.  It 
was  not  simply  the  largest  army  that  Athens  had  gathered  up  to 
this  time,  but  the  largest  she  was  fated  ever  to  muster ;  for  the 
very  next  year  pestilence  joined  with  war  to  waste  beyond  repair 
the  strength  of  the  imperial  city. 

Funeral  Oration  of  Pericles.  —  It  was  the  custom  of  the 
Athenians  to  bury  with  public  and  imposing  ceremonies  the  bones 
of  those  who  fell  in  battle.  In  the  funeral  procession  the  bones  of 
the  dead  of  each  tribe  were  borne  in  a  single  chest  on  a  litter, 
while  an  empty  litter  covered  with  a  pall  was  carried  for  those 
whose  bodies  had  not  been  recovered.  The  remains  were  laid  in 
the  public  cemetery,  outside  the  city  gates.  The  only  time  that 
the  Athenians  departed  from  this  custom  was  after  the  battle  of 
Marathon,  when  the  dead  were  buried  on  the  field  where  they  had 
fallen,  as  a  special  tribute  to  their  valor  and  self-devotion  (p.  157). 
After  the  burial  of  the  remains,  some  person  chosen  by  his  fellow- 
citizens  on  account  of  his  special  fitness  for  the  service  delivered 
an  oration  over  the  dead,  extolling  their  deeds  and  exhorting  the 
living  to  an  imitation  of  their  virtues.^ 

1  Thucyd.  ii.  34. 


FUNERAL    ORATION   OF  PERICLES.  287 

It  was  during  the  winter  following  the  campaign  we  have  de- 
scribed that  the  Athenians  celebrated  the  funeral  ceremonies  of 
those  who  had  fallen  thus  far  in  the  war.  Pericles  was  chosen  to 
give  the  oration  on  this  occasion.  This  funeral  speech,  as  reported 
by  Thucydides,  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  memorials  preserved 
to  us  from  antiquity.  All  the  circumstances  under  which  the 
oration  was  pronounced  lent  to  it  a  pecuHar  and  pathetic  interest. 

The  speaker  took  advantage  of  the  occasion  to  describe  the 
institutions  to  which  Athens  owed  her  greatness,  and  to  picture 
the  glories  of  the  imperial  city  for  which  the  heroes  they  lamented 
had  died.  He  first  spoke  of  the  fathers  from  whom  they  had  in- 
herited their  institutions  of  freedom,  and  their  great  empire,  and 
then  passed  on  to  speak  of  the  character  and  spirit  of  those  institu- 
tions through  which  Athens  had  risen  to  power  and  greatness.  The 
Athenian  government,  he  said,  was  a  democracy;  for  all  the 
citizens,  rich  and  poor  alike,  participated  in  its  administration. 
There  was  freedom  of  intercourse  and  of  action  among  the  citizens, 
each  doing  as  he  liked ;  and  yet  there  was  a  spirit  of  reverence 
and  respect  for  law.  Numerous  festivals  and  games  furnished 
amusement  and  relaxation  from  toil  for  all  citizens.  Life  in  the 
great  city  was  more  enjoyable  than  elsewhere,  being  enriched  by 
fruits  and  goods  from  all  the  world. 

The  speaker  praised,  too,  Athens'  military  system,  in  which  the 
citizen  was  not  sacrificed  to  the  soldier  as  at  Sparta;  and  yet 
Athens  was  alone  a  match  for  Sparta  and  all  her  allies.  He  ex- 
tolled the  intellectual,  moral,  and  social  virtues  of  the  Athenians, 
which  were  fostered  by  their  free  institutions,  and  declared  their 
city  to  be  "the  school  of  Hellas"  and  the  model  for  all  other 
cities. 

Continuing,  the  speaker  declared  that  Athens  alone  of  all  exist- 
ing cities  was  greater  than  the  report  of  her  in  the  world  ;  and  that 
she  would  never  need  a  Homer  to  perpetuate  her  memory,  because 
she  herself  had  set  up  everywhere  eternal  monuments  of  her  great- 
ness. "Such  is  the  city,"  he  exclaimed  impressively,  "for  whose 
sake  these  men  nobly  fought  and  died ;  they  could  not  bear  the 


288 


BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  N I  CIAS. 


thought  that  she  might  be  taken  from  them ;  and  every  one  of  us 

who  survive  should  gladly  toil  on  her  behalf." 

Then  followed  words  of  tribute  to  the  valor  and  self-devotion  of 

the  dead  whose  sepulchres  and  inscriptions  were  not  the  graves 

and  the  memorial  stones 
of  the  cemetery  —  "  for 
the  whole  earth  is  the 
sepulchre  of  fa  m  o  u  s 
men,"  and  the  memo- 
rials of  them  are  "  graven 
not  on  stone  but  in 
the  hearts  of  mankind." 
Finally,  with  words  of 
comfort  to  the  relatives 
of  the  dead,  the  orator 
dismissed  the  assembly 
to  their  homes.^ 

"  Thus  did  Pericles 
represent  to  the  Athe- 
nian citizens  the  nature  of 
their  state,  and  picture 
to  them  what  Athens 
should  be.  Their  better 
selves  he  held  before 
them,  in  order  to 
strengthen  them  and  to 
Hft  them  above  them- 
selves, and  to  inspire  in 
them  self-devotion  and 
new   courage  turned  they  from 


Fig.  31. 


THE   MOURNING   ATHENA. 2 
(From  a  photograph.^ 


constancy  and   bravery.     With 


1  Thucyd.  ii.  35-46,  for  the  whole  oration. 

2  A  bass-relief  recently  excavated  on  the  Acropolis  of  Athens.  Dr.  Charles 
Waldstein  thinks  that  this  sculpture  may  "  have  headed  an  inscription  containing 
the  names  of  those  who  had  fallen  in  battle,  which  record  was  placed  in  some 
public  spot  in  Athens  or  on  the  Acropolis.  Our  Athene-Nike  would  then  be  stand- 
ing in  the  attitude  of  mourning,  with  reversed  spear,  gazing  down  upon  the  tomb- 


THE  PLAGUE  AT  ATHENS.  289 

the  graves  of  the  fallen  to  then*  homes,  and  went  forward  to  meet 
whatever  destiny  the  gods  might  have  ordained."^ 

That  funeral  day  was,  indeed,  one  of  the  great  days  in  ancient 
Athens. 

The  Plague  at  Athens  (430  b.c). — Very  soon  had  the  Athe- 
nians need  to  exercise  all  those  virtues  which  the  orator  had 
admonished  them  to  cherish ;  for  upon  the  return  of  the  next 
campaigning  season,  the  Peloponnesians,  having  mustered  again 
two-thirds  of  all  their  fighting  forces,  broke  once  more  into  Attica 
and  ravaged  the  land  anew,  giving  to  the  flames  such  villages  and 
farm-houses,  chiefly  in  the  southern  and  eastern  parts  of  the  dis- 
trict, as  had  escaped  destruction  the  previous  year.  The  Athe- 
nians, adhering  to  their  policy  of  avoiding  a  battle  in  the  open 
field,  remained  behind  their  walls,  enduring  as  best  they  might 
the  sight  of  the  smoke  of  their  burning  homes  drifting  over  the 
plain. 

The  walls  of  Athens  were  unassailable  by  the  hostile  army ;  but 
unfortunately  they  were  no  defense  against  a  more  terrible  foe.  A 
pestilence  broke  out  in  the  crowded  city,  and  added  its  horrors  to 
the  already  unbearable  calamities  of  war.  Thucydides  was  him- 
self a  sufferer  from  the  disease,  and  gives  in  his  history  a  very 
careful  account  of  the  scourge.  The  plague  is  thought  to  have 
originated  in  Egypt ;  to  have  spread  from  there  over  the  Persian 
empire,  and  finally  to  have  entered  Athens  through  the  Peiraeus, 
whither  it  probably  was  brought  by  ships  coming  from  infected 
ports.  From  the  historian's  description  of  the  symptoms  shown 
by  the  victims  of  the  disorder,  it  is  believed  that  the  disease  was  a 
malignant  form  of  typhoid  fever.     So  frightful  was  the  mortality 

stone  which  surmounts  the  grave  oif  her  brave  sons."  As  to  the  possible  connection 
of  this  relief  with  the  funeral  oration  of  Pericles,  Dr.  Waldstein  says:  "Though  I 
do  not  mean  to  say  that  the  inscription  which  it  surmounted  referred  immediately 
to  those  who  had  fallen  in  the  campaign  of  431  B.C.,  I  still  feel  that  the  most  perfect 
counterpart  in  literature  is  the  famous  funeral  oration  of  Pericles  as  recorded  by 
Thucydides,"  See  his  interesting  article  entitled  "  Funeral  Orations  in  Stone  and 
Wood,"  Harper's  Magazine^  June,  1892. 
1  Curtius,  Griech.  Gesch.  ii.  408  (6th  ed.). 


290  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

that  the  unburied  dead  and  the  dying  filled  the  streets,  the  squares, 
the  houses,  and  even  the  temples.  Those  who  did  care  for  their 
dead  buried  them  in  whatever  burial-place  was  nearest,  disregard- 
ing wholly  the  rights  of  property,  or  they  flung  the  bodies  upon 
pyres  that  others  had  built  for  burning  their  own  dead. 

A  singular  manifestation  of  human  nature  evoked  by  the  panic 
and  distress,  and  one  which  has  been  repeatedly  observed  under 
similar  circumstances,  is  noticed  by  Thucydides.  Men  became 
reckless  and  bold  in  defying  human  and  divine  law,  and,  plunging 
into  shameful  orgies,  gave  themselves  up  to  illicit  pleasures  and 
indulgences  of  every  kind,  as  if  resolved  to  get  the  most  possible 
out  of  the  few  days  remaining  to  them. 

The  religious-minded  recalled  the  oracles  that  had  foretold  the 
event,  and  reflected  that  the  calamity  had  not  befallen  them  with- 
out the  foreknowledge  of  the  gods.  There  was  the  recent  oracle 
of  Apollo  to  the  eff'ect  that  he  would  take  part  in  the  war  and 
help  the  Lacedaemonians  (p.  279) — who  at  the  very  time  that 
the  disease  was  wasting  the  Athenians  within  the  walls,  were  wast- 
ing their  fields  outside ;  and  there  was  also  an  earlier  oracle, 
recalled  by  the  older  men,  which  declared  that  "  a  Dorian  war 
would  come  and  a  plague  with  it."  ^ 

The  plague  passed  into  the  Peloponnesus,  but  it  did  not  develop 
there  in  a  malignant  form.  We  may  infer  from  this  that  the  chief 
cause  of  its  virulence  at  Athens  was  the  crowded  and  consequently 
unsanitary  condition  of  the  city.  Fully  one-fourth  of  its  popula- 
tion was  swept  away. 

The  Athenian  Campaigns  during  the  Second  Year.  —  Even 
while  the  plague  was  raging  in  the  city  and  the  Peloponnesians 
were  ravaging  the  surrounding  country,  Pericles,  as  he  had  done 
the  preceding  year,  sent  out  a  fleet  of  one  hundred  Athenian 
triremes,  together  with  fifty  Chian  and  Lesbian  ships,  to  again 
harrow  the  coasts  of  the  Peloponnesus.  Accompanying  the  ex- 
pedition were  transports  bearing  three  hundred  horsemen,  who 
were  to  land  at  convenient  places  and  make  raids  inland.     The 

1  Thucyd.  ii.  54. 


THE  ATHENIAN  CAMPAIGNS.  291 

expedition  ravaged  the  shores  of  ArgoHs,  and,  after  destroying  a 
town  on  the  coast  of  Laconia,  returned  home. 

During  this  same  summer  another  expedition  was  sent  to  the 
Thracian  shore,  to  aid  the  army  besieging  Potidaea  (p.  277). 
But  the  germs  of  the  plague  were  carried  in  the  ships,  and  the 
disease  developed  with  such  virulence  in  the  Athenian  camp  as 
to  carry  off  in  forty  days  fifteen  hundred  men  out  of  a  force  of 
four  thousand  hoplites. 

The  various  misfortunes  of  the  year  dispirited  the  Athenians, 
and  once  more  they  became  furious  at  Pericles  and  began  to 
abuse  him  as  being  the  cause  of  all  their  sufferings.  In  their 
desperation  they  insisted  that  ambassadors  should  be  sent  to 
Sparta  to  seek  terms  of  peace.  Envoys  were  sent,  but  the 
embassy  resulted  in  nothing. 

Thereupon  Pericles,  with  the  view  to  calling  the  people  to 
themselves,  summoned  a  meeting  of  the  Ecclesia.  After  first 
reproving  them  for  their  unjust  reproaches  and  their  unreason- 
able outbursts  of  passion,  he  appealed  to  their  better  selves,  —  to 
them  as  they  had  felt  and  resolved  on  that  day  when  they  stood 
with  him  around  the  graves  of  the  fallen  of  the  first  year  of  the 
war  and  recalled  what  manner  of  city  it  was  for  which  they  were 
to  do  and  to  suffer,  —  and  thus  gradually  brought  them  to  a  better 
temper  and  a  more  resolute  mind,  and  induced  them  to  take  a 
more  hopeful  and  reasonable  view  of  their  affairs.  They  resolved 
to  persist  in  the  prosecution  of  the  war,  but,  according  to  Thu- 
cydides,  still  retained  enough  ill  feeling  against  Pericles  to  fine 
him  for  the  counsel  he  had  given  them  in  the  matter.  Straight- 
way, however,  with  their  characteristic  inconsistency  and  change- 
ableness,  recognizing  that  he  was  the  ablest  and  most  reliable 
man  among  them,  they  again  elected  him  general,  and  entrusted 
to  his  hands  the  full  control  of  the  public  business. 

Meanwhile,  ravaging  here  and  fighting  there  were  going  on, 
until  the  operations  of  the  second  year  of  the  war  were  ended  by 
the  surrender  of  Potidoea  to  the  Athenians.  By  the  terms  of  the 
surrender  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  were  forced,  in  the  midst 


292  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

of  the  winter  season,  to  go  out  and  find  new  homes  where  they 
could,  and  the  empty  city  was  filled  with  settlers  fi-om  Athens. 
Its  fidelity  for  the  future  was  insured. 

The  Death  of  Pericles  (429  b.c).  —  In  the  third  year  of  the 
war  the  plague  reappeared  at  Athens,  though  it  did  not  rage  with 
the  violence  which  had  marked  its  course  the  preceding  year. 
But  Pericles,  who  had  been  the  very  soul  and  life  of  Athens  dur- 
ing all  these  dark  days,  fell  a  victim  to  the  disease.  The  plague 
had  previously  robbed  him  of  his  sister  and  his  two  sons.  The 
death  of  his  younger  son  had  bowed  him  in  grief,  and  as  he  laid 
the  usual  funeral  wreath  upon  the  head  of  the  dead  boy,  for  the 
first  time  in  his  life,  it  is  said,  he  gave  way  to  his  feehngs  in 
a  passionate  outburst  of  tears.  In  dying,  the  great  statesman 
is  reported  to  have  said  to  those  standing  about  him  that  he 
regarded  his  best  title  to  honored  remembrance  to  be  that  "  he 
had  never  caused  an  Athenian  to  put  on  mourning." 

After  the  death  of  Pericles  the  leadership  of  affairs  at  Athens 
fell  to  a  great  degree  into  the  hands  of  unprincipled  demagogues. 
The  mob  element  got  control  of  the  Ecclesia,  so  that  hereafter  we 
shall  find  many  of  its  measures  characterized  neither  by  virtue  nor 
wisdom. 

The  Revolt  of  Mytilene  (428-427  b.c.)  :  the  Athenians  block- 
ade the  City.  —  The  most  important  matters  of  the  three  years 
immediately  following  the  death  of  Pericles  were  the  revolt  from 
Athens  of  Mytilene,  on  the  island  of  Lesbos,  and  the  siege  and 
destruction  of  Plataea  by  the  Peloponnesians.  We  shall  first  relate 
the  circumstances  of  the  Mytilensean  revolt,  and  then  give  an 
account  of  the  fall  of  Plataea. 

In  the  fourth  year  of  the  war  (428  B.C.),  the  whole  island  of 
Lesbos,  except  the  town  of  Methymna  on  the  northern  shore, 
revolted  from  Athens.  The  chief  city  of  the  island  was  Mytilene, 
and  this  place  was  the  centre  of  the  movement.  The  Mytilenaeans 
had  been  making  preparations  to  revolt  ever  since  the  beginning 
of  the  war.  They  had  been  strengthening  the  defenses  of  their 
city,  building  ships,  contracting  for  supplies  from  the  region  of  the 


THE  MYTTLENMAN  ENVOYS  AT  OLYMPIA.  293 

Euxine,  —  and  of  course  carrying  on  secret  negotiations  with 
Sparta.  In  the  midst  of  their  preparations,  their  designs  were 
betrayed  to  the  Athenians. 

The  Athenians,  upon  the  receipt  of  this  intelhgence,  were  greatly 
troubled ;  for  the  navy  of  the  Mytilenseans  was  one  of  the  largest 
in  Hellas,  and  their  revolt  at  just  this  time,  when  all  the  resources 
of  Athens  were  taxed  to  the  utmost,  was  a  very  serious  matter. 
Envoys  sent  to  Mytilene  having  confirmed  the  worst  reports  as  to 
what  was  going  on  there,  the  Athenians  seized  the  ten  Mytilengean 
triremes  which  were  serving  in  the  Athenian  navy  and  imprisoned 
their  crews,  and  then  dispatched  hurriedly  to  Lesbos  a  fleet  of 
forty  ships,  thinking  to  take  the  Mytilenaeans  by  surprise. 

A  secret  messenger  from  Athens,  however,  warned  the  Mytile- 
naeans of  their  danger,  and  when  the  Athenian  fleet  appeared  before 
Mytilene,  its  walls  were  manned,  its  harbor  was  blocked,  and  the 
inhabitants  were  standing  on  the  defense.  The  Athenian  gen- 
erals, as  their  force  was  insufficient  to  enable  them  to  regularly 
invest  the  place,  agreed  to  a  truce  with  the  inhabitants.  As  soon 
as  the  Mytilenaeans  had  secured  this  respite,  they  sent  an  embassy 
to  Athens  to  represent  to  the  Athenians  that  the  rumors  in  circu- 
lation respecting  their  intention  to  revolt  were  wholly  unfounded. 
Foreseeing,  however,  that  this  story  would  receive  no  credence  at 
Athens,  they  at  the  same  time  secretly  sent  messengers  to  Sparta 
to  ask  for  assistance. 

The  Mytilenaean  Envoys  at  Olympia.  —  Now  it  chanced  that 
when  the  envoys  to  Sparta  reached  that  place,  the  Spartans  were 
on  the  eve  of  their  departure  for  the  games  at  Olympia,  and  they 
invited  the  envoys  to  go  up  with  them,  and  lay  the  matter  before 
a  council  of  the  allies  at  that  place.  The  envoys  accepted  the 
invitation,  and  at  the  council  there  of  the  Peloponnesian  allies 
pleaded  the  cause  of  the  Mytilenaeans.  They  rehearsed  how,  after 
the  battle  of  Plataea,  they  had  joined  the  Delian  League  in  order 
to  help  free  the  Greeks  that  were  still  enslaved  by  the  Persians, 
and  how  as  a  result  they  had  been  themselves  virtually  enslaved  by 
Athens.     They  were  not  slaves  in  name,  it  was  true ;  they  were 


294  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

called  allies,  but  the  alliance  was  really  so  unequal  that  they  had 
no  will  of  their  own  :  they  must  obey  Athens  as  though  she  were  a 
master.  And  then  any  moment  they  might  lose  even  the  name  of 
allies,  and  become  slaves  both  in  name  and  fact,  as  had  all  the 
other  once  free  allies  of  the  league,  with  two  or  three  exceptions. 
It  was  this  intolerable  condition  of  their  once  independent  city 
that  had  led  them  to  revolt.  The  envoys  closed  their  speech  by^ 
representing  their  cause  as  the  cause  of  all  the  once  free  cities  now 
held  in  slavery  by  the  Tyrant-city,  and  by  appealing  to  the  Spar- 
tans to  become  the  liberators  of  Hellas.^ 

The  Peloponnesians  resolve  to  attack  Athens  in  Aid  of  the 
Mytilenaeans ;  their  Attempt  miscarries.  —  The  petition  of  the 
envoys  was  straightway  granted.  The  opportunity  was  too  good 
a  one  for  striking  a  heavy  blow  at  the  power  of  Athens  for  the 
Peloponnesians  to  allow  it  to  slip  by  unimproved.  The  Mytile- 
naeans were  admitted  as  allies  to  the  Peloponnesian  league,  and  the 
confederates  were  summoned  to  hurry  their  contingents  to  the 
Isthmus. 

The  plan  of  the  Peloponnesians  was  to  drag  their  ships  over  the 
Isthmus  of  Corinth,  and  attack  Athens  both  by  sea  and  land,  as 
they  thought  that  the  absence  of  the  Athenian  fleet  at  Lesbos  — 
for  the  Athenians  were  now  blockading  Mytilene  —  must  leave  the 
city  in  a  measure  defenseless  on  the  side  of  the  sea.  i 

But  the  Athenians  soon  undeceived  them.  Suspecting  what 
the  Lacedaemonians  had  in  mind,  they  got  ready  in  haste  a  hun- 
dred ships,  manned  them  in  part  with  resident  aliens,  and  then 
paraded  their  strength  in  front  of  the  Isthmus.  They  also  landed 
a  force  on  the  neighboring  Peloponnesian  shore  and  ravaged  the 
land. 

At  the  same  time  that  they  were  confronted  at  the  Isthmus  by 
this  display  of  the  enemy's  strength,  the  Spartans  received  intelli- 
gence that  a  large  Athenian  squadron  was  harrying  the  coast  of 
the  Peloponnesus  farther  to  the  south.  There  seemed  to  be  no 
end  to  the  number  of  ships  the  Athenians  could  man  :  here  was  a 
1  Thucyd.  iii.  9-14,  for  the  whole  speech. 


THE  MYTILENyEANS  ARE  FORCED  TO  SURRENDER.     295 

fleet  a  hundred  strong  at  the  Isthmus,  another  at  Lesbos,  and  still 
a  third  cruising  about  the  Peloponnesus.  Despairing  of  the  suc- 
cess of  an  attack  by  sea  on  Athens,  especially  since  their  allies, 
who  were  busy  getting  in  their  crops,  had  not  yet  sent  their  con- 
tingents to  the  Isthmus,  the  Lacedaemonians  abandoned  their 
plans  and  went  home. 

The  Mytilenaeans  are  forced  to  surrender  (427  b.c).  —  Mean- 
while the  war  had  flamed  out  at  Lesbos.  The  Mytilenaeans  had 
made  an  attempt  to  capture  Methymna,  the  city  in  the  north  of 
the  island  which  held  to  Athens,  but  had  failed  in  the  endeavor ; 
and  now  they  were  being  besieged  in  their  own  city  by  sea  and 
land.  The  Athenians  had  drawn  about  the  city  a  wall,  strength- 
ened in  places  by  towers  or  forts,  so  that  nothing  could  be  carried 
in  or  out  of  the  town.^ 

The  blockade  was  maintained  during  the  winter.  When  the 
campaigning  season  of  the  fifth  year  of  the  war  opened,  the  Pelo- 
ponnesians  sent  a  fleet  of  forty  ships  under  the  command  of 
Alcidas  to  the  assistance  of  the  Mytilenaeans,  and  at  the  same 
time,  in  order  to  divide  the  attention  of  the  Athenians,  made 
another  raid  into  Attica.  Once  more  the  country  was  ravaged, 
this  time  more  thoroughly  and  systematically  than  ever  before. 
Every  green  thing,  the  plants  and  trees  as  well  as  the  growing 
grain,  seems  to  have  been  destroyed,  in  so  far  as  it  was  possible 
to  do  so. 

But  the  succors  dispatched  for  Lesbos  failed  to  reach  the 
island  in  time  to  save  the  Mytilenaeans.  As  day  after  day  passed, 
and  the  expected  ships  did  not  come,  the  Mytilenaean  nobles, 
being  confronted  by  a  revolt  of  the  common  people,  who  were 
desperate  from  hunger,  and  who,  moreover,  felt  that  they  had  no 
stock  in  the  war,  which,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  was  being  prosecuted  in 

1  The  cost  of  investing  a  city  in  this  manner  was  heavy.  So  great  was  the  outgo 
at  the  present  time  that  the  Athenians  found  themselves  under  the  necessity  of 
resorting  to  unusual  measures  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  treasury.  For  the 
first  time  in  the  history  of  the  city  the  people  levied  upon  themselves  a  property 
tax  of  two  hundred  talents  (about  ^240,000),  and  dispatched  twelve  ships  to  gather 
tribute  from  the  allies.     Tliucyd.  iii.  19. 


296  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

the  interests  of  the  oHgarchs  alone,  surrendered  to  the  Athenians, 
on  the  condition,  however,  that  the  generals  should  not  of  them- 
selves inflict  punishment  upon  any  of  the  inhabitants,  but  should 
allow  the  Mytilenaeans  to  send  an  embassy  to  Athens  for  the 
purpose  of  making  terms  directly  with  the  Athenian  people. 
They  hoped  to  find  there  friends  to  plead  their  cause.  On  these 
conditions  the  gates  of  Mytilene  were  opened  to  the  Athenians, 
and  the  proposed  embassy  was  allowed  to  proceed  to  Athens. 

Debate  at  Athens  over  the  Fate  of  the  Prisoners:  Cleon. — 
The  Athenians  were  in  a  revengeful  mood,  as  the  revolt  of  the 
Mytilenaeans  seemed  to  them  not  only  a  most  perfidious  act  on 
the  part  of  allies  whom  they  had  always  treated  well,  but  one 
that  the  security  of  the  empire  demanded  should  be  severely 
punished.  Accordingly  they  executed  at  once  Salaethus,  the  leader 
of  the  revolt,  whom  the  Athenian  general  Paches  had  sent  on 
with  the  envoys,  and  at  the  instigation  of  the  demagogue  Cleon, 
passed  a  decree  to  the  effect  that  the  other  captives  at  Athens 
and  all  the  men  of  Mytilene,  six  thousand  in  number,  should 
without  exception  be  put  to  death,  and  the  women  and  children 
sold  into  slavery.  A  galley  was  at  once  dispatched  to  carry  to 
the  general  at  Mytilene  orders  for  the  immediate  execution  of  the 
sentence. 

By  the  next  morning,  however,  the  Athenians  had  repented  of 
their  hasty  and  cruel  resolution.  To  make  no  distinction  between 
the  guilty  and  the  innocent,  they  themselves,  now  that  they  had 
come  to  their  better  selves,  recognized  to  be  monstrous.  The 
Mytilenaean  envoys  and  their  friends,  since  now  the  Athenians 
were  accessible  to  reason,  succeeded  in  persuading  the  magis- 
trates to  call  a  second  meeting  of  the  Ecclesia  for  the  purpose  of 
reconsidering  the  barbarous  decree. 

The  citizens  having  again  assembled,  Cleon  addressed  them  in 
a  violent  speech,  taunting  them  for  their  inconsistency  and  woman- 
heartedness,  and  reminding  them  that  their  rule  was  a  despotism, 
—  there  was  no  disguising  the  fact,  —  and  that  they  must  depend 
upon  fear  and  not  love  for  the  obedience  of  their  subjects  and 


DEBATE   AT  ATHENS.  297 

allies.  To  pardon  the  Mytilenaean  rebels,  he  insisted,  was  to  in- 
vite all  their  allies  to  revolt,  and  to  ruin  the  Athenian  empire. 
And  there  was  no  occasion  to  prate  about  making  a  distinction 
between  the  innocent  and  the  guilty ;  they  were  all  alike  guilty. 
The  Athenians,  if  they  were  going  to  rule,  must  have  nothing  to  do 
with  pity,  or  forgiveness,  or  mercy,  or  right.  They  must  take 
vengeance  upon  their  enemies  whether  it  be  right  or  wrong ;  the 
Mytilenseans  must  be  made  an  example  of,  if  Athens  was  to  main- 
tain her  empire.  ''When  virtue  is  no  longer  dangerous,"  —  thus 
Cleon  talked  to  his  hsteners,  —  "then  you  may  be  as  virtuous  as 
you  please."^ 

In  listening  to  this  demagogue  we  realize  what  Athens  lost  when 
death  robbed  her  of  her  wise  counsellor  Pericles.  We  tremble  for 
her  future  with  such  men  as  Cleon  prominent  in  her  councils. 

Cleon  was  followed  by  Diodotus,  who  had  opposed  the  first 
decree,  and  who  now  spoke  in  favor  of  its  repeal.  He  did  not 
carry  the  discussion  to  high  moral  or  humanitarian  grounds,  but 
advised  leniency  in  dealing  with  the  Mytilenseans  on  the  ground  of 
expediency.  "  The  question  for  us,  rightly  considered,"  he  said 
frankly,  "  is  not.  What  are  their  crimes  ?  but.  What  is  for  our  inter- 
est? "  He  then  endeavored  to  show  that  it  would  not  be  expedient 
for  the  Athenians  to  deal  with  the  Mytilenaeans  in  the  way  pro- 
posed by  Cleon.  To  put  them  to  death  would  not  deter  others 
of  the  subjects  of  Athens  from  revolting;  for  all  experience  went 
to  prove  that  severe  penalties  never  deter  men  from  doing  what 
hope,  or  interest,  or  passion  prompts  them  to  undertake. 

The  better  poHcy  for  the  Athenians  to  pursue,  Diodotus  urged, 
was  to  inflict  upon  the  Mytilenaeans  simply  a  moderate  punish- 
ment ;  then,  if  ever  they  should  have  to  blockade  another  rebellious 
city,  the  inhabitants  would  not  fight  so  desperately  as  they  would 
did  they  know  that  there  was  no  hope  or  mercy  for  them  if  they 
were  overcome. 

The  speaker  also  represented  to  the  Athenians  that  they  would 
commit  a  grave  error  should  they  mete  out  the  same  punishment  to 

1  Thucyd.  iii.  37-40, 


298  BEGINNING  OF   WAR   TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

the  common  people  in  Mytilene  as  to  the  nobles,  even  if  they  were 
equally  guilty,  which  was  not  the  case ;  for  it  was  to  their  action 
that  the  Athenians  owed  the  surrender  of  the  city.  Indeed,  in  all 
the  cities  of  their  empire  the  popular  party  favored  the  Athenian 
rule,  and  were  in  opposition  to  the  aristocratic  party,  which 
everywhere  was  hostile  to  Athens.  Now  the  Athenians  should 
foster  this  division  in  the  cities  by  punishing  severely  in  the 
present  case  the  leading  oligarchs  who  were  the  authors  of  the 
revolt,  and  whom  Paches  had  already  sent  to  Athens,  and  by 
letting  all  the  others  go  free.^ 

The  moderate  counsel  of  Diodotus  prevailed ;  but  the  strength 
of  Cleon's  following  was  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  repeal  of  the 
earlier  decision  was  carried  by  the  barest  majority.  A  swift 
trireme  was  instantly  dispatched  to  bear  the  reprieve  to  the 
Athenian  general  at  Mytilene.  The  galley  carrying  the  first  order 
had  now  been  out  twenty-four  hours,  and  it  was  feared  that  the 
reprieve  might  after  all  reach  the  island  too  late.  The  Myti- 
lengean  envoys  provided  the  crew  of  the  trireme  with  the  most 
nourishing  food,  and  promised  them  a  large  reward  if  they 
overtook  the  first  ship.  With  every  nerve  tense  by  virtue  of 
the  nature  of  their  errand,  and  with  strength  inspired  by  the 
hoped-for  reward,  the  crew,  taking  their  food  at  the  oars,  urged 
their  galley  across  the  yEgean  with  incredible  swiftness,  and 
reached  the  island  just  in  time  to  stay  the  execution  of  the  first 
edict. 

The  second  resolution  of  the  Athenians,  though  more  discrim- 
inating than  the  first  decree,  was  severe.  The  Athenian  general 
had  sent  to  Athens  over  a  thousand  of  the  leading  citizens  of 
Mytilene.  All  these  were  put  to  death.  The  walls  of  Mytilene 
were  thrown  down,  and  the  Mytilensean  navy  appropriated 
by  the  Athenians.  The  lands  of  the  whole  island,  save  those 
belonging  to  the  town  of  Methymna,  were  divided  into  three 
thousand  portions,  of  which  a  tenth  was  set  aside  for  the  gods, 
and  the  remainder  given  to  Athenian  citizens,  who  were  chosen 

1  Thucyd.  iii.  42-48. 


SIEGE   OF  PLAT  MA   BY   THE  SPARTANS.  299 

by  lot,  and  who  formed  a  sort  of  military  settlement  on  the 
island.-^ 

The  Siege  of  Plataea  by  the  Spartans  (429-427  r.c).  —  The 
same  year  that  witnessed  the  suppression  and  punishment  of  the 
Lesbian  revolt,  saw  the  utter  destruction  of  Plataea  by  the  Pelo- 
ponnesians. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  after  the  unsuccessful  attempt  of  the 
Thebans  at  the  beginning  of  the  war  to  capture  this  place 
(p.  282),  the  women  and  children  were  removed,  and  an  Athenian 
force  sent  to  the  town  to  help  the  Plataeans  garrison  it,  as  it  was 
too  important  an  outpost  towards  Thebes  to  be  allowed  by  the 
Athenians  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  their  enemies. 

In  the  summer  of  the  third  year  of  the  war  (429  B.C.)  the 
Spartan  king  Archidamus,  instead  of,  again  ravaging  Attica,  led  an 
army  into  the  territory  of  the  Plataeans,  intending  to  lay  it  waste. 
The  Plataeans,  upon  the  appearance  of  the  Lacedaemonian  army, 
sent  an  embassy  to  Archidamus,  reminding  him  how,  by  the 
united  voice  of  all  the  Greeks  who  fought  at  Plataea  against  the 
barbarians,  Plataea  had  been  declared  a  free  and  independent 
city  and  its  territory  pronounced  sacred  and  inviolable ;  and  how 
the  Spartans  themselves  had  taken  the  oath  to  punish  any  one 
who  should  dare  to  break  the  peace  of  the  land  (p.  222).  They 
adjured  him  in  the  name  of  the  witnessing  gods  to  refrain  from 
committing  the  wrong  and  sacrilege  he  contemplated.- 

The  answer  of  Archidamus  to  the  envoys  was  that  the  Plataeans 
should  use  the  independence  which  was  granted  them  at  the  time 
of  the  great  war  for  freedom,  in  helping  the  Peloponnesian  con- 
federates to  liberate  those  cities  which  Athens  had  enslaved ;  for 
that  was  the  aim  and  purpose  of  the  war  which  Sparta  and  her 
allies  were  now  waging  against  Athens.     If  they  did  not  wish, 

1  These  settlers  were  cleruchs,  like  those  we  have  seen  sent  to  Chalcis  and  other 
places.  They  did  not  cultivate  with  their  own  hands  the  lands  received  ;  these  were 
hlled  by  the  native  Lesbians,  who  paid  the  new  proprietors  a  fixed  rent.  The 
Mytilenseans  held  several  towns  on  the  Asiatic  shore  adjacent  to  Lesbos.  Their 
possessions  there  now  also  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Athenians. 

2  Thucyd.  ii.  71. 


300  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NIC  IAS. 

however,  to  aid  the  liberators,  they  must  at  least  remain  neutral ; 
they  could  not  expect  to  side  actively  with  the  destroyers  of  the 
common  liberties  of  the  Greeks,  and  yet  be  allowed  to  shelter 
themselves  behind  the  alleged  inviolabihty  of  their  territory. 

The  Plataeans  explained  that  they  really  were  not  free  to  act  as 
they  chose  in  the  matter,  since  their  wives  and  children  were 
in  the  hands  of  the  Athenians,  and  also  through  fear  of  the 
Thebans,  who  had  once  attempted  to .  seize  their  city,  and  might 
do  so  again.  They  must  have  a  protector ;  but  that  protector's 
wish  was  perforce  law  to  them. 

To  these  representations  Archidamus  proposed  that  they  should 
mark  the  boundaries  of  their  territory,  count  their  fruit-trees,  and 
take  a  careful  inventory  of  all  their  goods,  and  then  deHver 
everything  into  the  hands  of  the  Spartans,  who  would  hold  the 
property  till  the  end  of  the  war,  and  then  return  it  to  them, 
together  with  a  fair  rent  for  its  use,  in  just  the  condition  that  they 
had  received  it.  Meanwhile  they  themselves  might  go  where 
they  pleased.^ 

The  Platjeans  asked  permission  to  make  known  these  proposals 
to  the  Athenians,  and  get  their  advice.  Permission  being  granted, 
the  Plataeans  sent  envoys  to  Athens  to  lay  the  matter  before  them. 
The  Athenians  returned  to  the  Plataeans,  by  the  hands  of  the 
envoys,  this  message  :  "  Plataeans,  the  Athenians  say  that  never 
at  any  time  since  you  first  became  their  allies,  have  they  suffered 
any  one  to  do  you  wrong,  and  they  will  not  forsake  you  now,  but 
will  assist  you  to  the  utmost  of  their  power;  and  they  conjure 
you  by  the  oaths  which  your  fathers  swore,  not  to  forsake  the 
Athenian  alliance."^ 

The  fidelity  of  the  Plataeans  to  their  old  friends  and  patrons  was 
equal  to  the  sacrifice  that  was  required  of  them.  Not  deeming 
it  prudent  to  put  their  envoys  in  the  power  of  the  enemy,  they 
announced  to  Archidamus  from  their  walls  that  they  could  not 
exchange  their  old  for  new  allies. 

The  siege  now  began.  The  minute  account  which  Thucydides 
1  Thucyd.  ii.  72.  2  Thucyd.  ii.  73. 


SIEGE    OF  PLATMA   BY   THE   SPARTANS.  301 

gives  of  the  siege  operations  is  valuable  because  of  the  light  it 
throws  upon  the  state  at  this  time  among  the  Greeks  of  the  art  of 
besieging  cities. 

The  Peloponnesians  first  built  a  palisade,  constructed  of  the 
trunks  of  fruit-trees,  around  the  town,  so  that  no  one  could  pass 
in  or  out.  They  then  raised  opposite  a  certain  point  of  the  wall 
a  great  mound  of  earth  and  logs.  The  whole  army  labored  upon 
this  mound  for  over  two  months,  the  work  going  on  day  and  night 
under  Spartan  overseers. 

The  Plataeans,  when  the  rising  mound  began  to  threaten  to  over- 
top the  city  wall,  carried  the  wall  at  this  point  higher,  tearing  down 
their  houses  to  get  timber  and  brick.  And  so  the  mound  and  the 
wall  went  up  together.  The  daily  gain  of  the  mound,  however, 
was  retarded  by  a  shrewd  device  of  the  Plataeans.  They  dug  a 
hole  through  the  city  wall  at  the  point  where  the  mound  rested 
against  it,  and  drained,  as  it  were,  the  earth  into  the  city.  The 
sinking  of  the  mound  revealed  to  the  Peloponnesians  what  was 
going  on,  and  they  put  a  stop  to  it  by  filling  the  gaping  hole  with 
clay  and  reeds.  The  Plataeans  now  dug  a  tunnel  which  opened 
under  the  mound  some  distance  from  the  wall,  and  began  anew  to 
draw  away  the  earth.  This  went  on  for  a  considerable  time  before 
discovery,  and  meanwhile  the  mound,  despite  the  day  and  night 
labor  of  the  Peloponnesians,  grew  very  slowly. 

Still  another  device  of  the  besieged  to  meet  the  threatened 
danger  from  the  mound  was  this  :  Behind  that  section  of  the  wall 
which  was  likely  to  be  commanded  soon  by  the  mound,  they  built 
an  inner  wall,  in  the  form  of  a  crescent,  so  that  should  the  Pelo- 
ponnesians get  possession  of  the  outer  one,  they  would  find 
themselves  in  front  of  a  new  rampart. 

At  the  same  time  that  the  Peloponnesians  were  carrying  forward 
the  work  on  the  mound,  they  were  bringing  up  against  the  walls 
heavy  battering-rams.  The  Plataeans  disabled  these  in  various 
ways.  They  caught  them  in  nooses  and  drew  them  up,  or  broke 
the  heads  of  the  rams  by  dropping  heavy  logs  upon  them,  just  as 
they  were  being  swung  against  the  wall. 


302  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

Making  but  little  progress  with  their  mound  and  engines,  the 
Peloponnesians  tried  to  set  fire  to  the  town.  They  piled  a  great 
mass  of  branches  of  trees  upon  the  mound,  and  threw  others  over 
the  city  walls  so  as  to  make  a  great  heap  of  material  ready  to  flame 
up  like  tinder,  and  then  set  the  whole  afire.  "  A  flame  arose," 
says  Thucydides,  "  of  which  the  like  had  never  before  been  made 
by  the  hand  of  man."  Notwithstanding  that  there  was  such  an 
unheard-of  conflagration,  the  Plataeans  escaped  with  the  loss  of 
only  a  part  of  their  homes ;  for  a  timely  thunder-storm,  it  is  said, 
rescued  them  from  their  imminent  peril.^ 

Despairing  of  taking  the  city  in  any  of  these  ways,  the  Pelopon- 
nesians now  built  round  the  place  a  double  brick  wall,  strengthened 
with  towers  and  moats,  and,  having  set  a  strong  guard  to  watch  the 
city,  withdrew  their  main  army.  There  were  imprisoned  in  the 
city  four  hundred  Plataeans  and  eighty  Athenians,  together  with 
a  hundred  and  ten  women  to  prepare  their  food.  All  the  rest  of 
the  inhabitants,  as  has  been  related,  had  been  taken  to  Athens. 

As  winter  came  on  (428-427  B.C.),  provisions  began  to  fail 
within  the  city,  and  the  Plataeans  in  their  desperation  resolved  to 
make  an  attempt  to  force  their  way  out.  Taking  advantage  of 
the  darkness  of  a  stormy  night,  when  the  driving  rain  and  sleet 
had  caused  the  guards  to  somewhat  relax  their  vigilance,  two 
hundred  and  twenty  of  the  garrison  broke  over  the  enemy's  wall, 
and  succeeded,  almost  without  exception,  in  reaching  Athens  in 
safety. 

The  Surrender:  the  Trial:  the  Destruction  of  Plataea  (427 
B.C.) .  —  The  following  summer  those  still  left  within  the  city,  two 
hundred  and  twenty-five  in  number,  whose  courage  had  not  been 
equal  to  the  bold  attempt  of  their  companions,  pressed  by  hunger 
and  the  assaults  of  the  enemy,  surrendered  to  the  Spartans.  Their 
fate  was  to  be  decided  by  Spartan  judges,  but  no  one  was  to  be 
punished  without  "just  cause." 

Being  brought  before  the  five  commissioners  who  had  been  sent 
from  Sparta,  each  Plataian  was  asked  this  question  :  "  Have  you 
1  Thucyd.  ii.  75-77. 


THE  SURRENDER,  303 

rendered  any  service  to  Sparta  or  her  allies  during  the  present 
war?"     Two  advocates,  previously  chosen,  made  answer  for  all. 

They  said  that  the  Spartans  had  betrayed  the  confidence  which 
the  Plataeans  had  reposed  in  them.  They  had  expected  a  legal 
trial,  in  which  accusations  to  which  they  might  reply  would  be 
brought  against  them ;  but  the  form  of  the  question  put  to  them 
convinced  them  that  they  were  condemned  beforehand  in  the 
minds  of  their  judges.  They  saw  in  it  all  the  hand  of  their 
mortal  enemies,  the  Thebans.  Nevertheless,  they  must  say  some- 
thing. And  so  they  pleaded  the  services  that,  if  not  in  the 
present  war,  at  least  in  earlier  wars,  they  had  rendered  Hellas, 
and  their  claim  upon  the  gratitude  of  all  the  Hellenes.  They 
bore  their  part,  and  more  than  their  part,  in  the  great  war  of 
freedom  against  the  barbarians :  though  they  had  no  interest 
on  the  seas,  they  fought  at  Artemisium,  and  again  in  the  battle  in 
their  own  land  when  the  gods  granted  the  Greeks  their  greatest 
victory.  And  the  Spartans  ought  not  to  forget  how,  when  they 
were  in  great  distress  through  the  revolt  of  the  Helots  at  the  time 
of  the  earthquake,  the  Plataeans  sent  a  third  of  all  their  soldiers 
to  help  them.^ 

The  advocates  then  rehearsed  the  circumstances  under  which 
the  Plataeans  had  entered  into  the  Athenian  alliance  ;  and  defended 
their  conduct  in  refusing  the  proposals  of  Archidamus  —  for  it 
were  base  in  the  Plataeans.  to  betray  their  benefactors. 

The  speakers  then  arraigned  the  Thebans  for  their  outrageous 
attempt  to  seize  the  city  of  the  Plataeans,  which  act  was  the 
source  of  the  present  trouble ;  and  recalled  their  traitorous 
conduct  at  the  time  of  the  Persian  War.  The  Spartan  judges 
ought  not  to  sacrifice  the  Plataeans  at  the  instigation  of  such  men. 
They  must  render  a  just  and  impartial  decision,  or  the  reputation 
the  Spartans  had  borne  for  uprightness  and  impartiality  would 
be  lost ;  for  this  thing  was  not  being  done  in  a  corner,  but  in  the 
face  of  all  the  world.  "  Mankind  will  not  endure,"  said  the 
speaker,  "  to  see  spoils  taken  from  us,  the  benefactors  of  Hellas, 

1  See  p.  242. 


304  BEGINNING  OF  WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

dedicated  by  our  enemies  in  the  common  temples.  Will  it  not 
be  deemed  a  monstrous  thing  that  the  Lacedaemonians  should 
desolate  Plataea ;  that  they,  whose  fathers  inscribed  the  name  of 
the  city  on  the  tripod  at  Delphi  in  token  of  her  valor,^  should,  for 
the  sake  of  the  Thebans,  blot  out  the  whole  people  from  the 
Hellenic  world?  For  to  this  we  have  come  at  last.  .  .  .  The 
Plataeans,  who  were  zealous  in  the  cause  of  Hellas  even  beyond 
their  strength,  are  now  friendless,  spurned  and  rejected  of  all  .  .  . 
Yet  once  more,  O  Lacedaemonians,  for  the  sake  of  those  gods  in 
whose  name  we  made  a  league  of  old,  and  for  our  services  to  the 
cause  of  Hellas,  relent  and  change  your  minds,  if  the  Thebans 
have  at  all  influenced  you  :  in  return  for  the  wicked  request  they 
make  of  you,  ask  of  them  the  righteous  boon  that  you  should 
not  slay  us  to  your  dishonor.  .  .  ,  Before  you  pass  judgment, 
consider  that  we  surrendered  ourselves,  and  stretched  out  our 
hands  to  you ;  the  custom  of  Hellas  does  not  allow  the  suppliant 
to  be  put  to  death.  Remember  too  that  we  have  ever  been  your 
benefactors.  Cast  your  eyes  upon  the  sepulchres  of  your  fathers 
slain  by  the  Persians  and  buried  in  our  land,  whom  we  have 
honored  by  a  yearly  public  offering  of  garments  and  other  cus- 
tomary gifts  .  .  .  Reflect :  when  Pausanias  buried  them  here,  he 
thought  that  he  was  laying  them  among  friends  and  in  friendly 
earth.  But  if  you  put  us  to  death,  and  make  Plataea  one  with 
Thebes,  are  you  not  robbing  your  fathers  and  kindred  of  the 
honor  they  enjoy,  and  leaving  them  in  a  hostile  land  inhabited 
by  their  murderers?  Nay  more,  you  enslave  the  land  in  which 
the  Hellenes  won  their  liberty ;  you  bring  desolation  upon  the 
temples  in  which  they  prayed  when  they  conquered  the  Persians ; 
and  take  away  the  sacrifices  which  your  fathers  instituted,  from 
the  city  which  ordained  and  estabUshed  them."  Then  with  this 
last  appeal  to  their  judges, —  "You  are  Hberating  the  other  Hel- 
lenes ;  do  not  destroy  us," —  the  Plataeans  closed  their  defense.^ 

1  See  p.  221. 

2  Thucyd.  iii.  53-59,  for  the  whole  defense.     The  speech  is  a  remarkable  one. 
It  is  full  of  historical  reminiscences,  and  betrays  in   every  line  the  feeling  of 


SURRENDER  AND  DESTRUCTION  OF  PLAT^A.     '  305 

The  Thebans  were  now  given  an  opportunity  to  speak.  They 
explained  and  defended  their  feeUng  of  enmity  towards  the 
Plataeans  by  telhng  how  they  had  disloyally  separated  themselves 
from  their  kinsmen  the  Boeotians,  and  allied  themselves  with  the 
people  of  Attica.  They  admitted  that  they  joined  Xerxes  in  the 
Persian  War.  But  that  happened  through  the  government  of  their 
city  being  at  that  time  in  the  hands  of  a  clique  friendly  to  Persia, 
They  had  no  other  choice.  In  any  event,  they  were  fighting  on 
the  right  side  now.  And  the  Platseans  need  not  take  so  much 
praise  to  themselves  for  having  fought  against  the  barbarians  :  that 
came  about  from  their  being  allies  of  Athens,  and  compelled  to 
follow  her  lead.  They  excused  the  attempt  they  had  made  to 
seize  Plataea  by  saying  that  they  had  been  invited  to  take  posses- 
sion of  the  city  by  some  of  the  best  citizens,  who  wanted  to  see 
the  foreign  alliance  with  Athens  annulled,  and  their  city  brought 
into  its  proper  and  natural  relations  to  the  other  cities  of  Bceotia. 
They  also  brought  counter-charges  against  the  Platseans,  especially 
for  the  recent  murder  of  the  Theban  prisoners,  whose  lives 
were  under  the  protection  of  a  solemn  agreement  and  a  sacred 
oath,  and  called  upon  the  judges,  paying  no  attention  to  what 
the  accused  had  said  about  "  stretching  out  their  suppliant 
hands,"  to  pronounce  against  them  the  sentence  they  richly 
deserved  as  haters  of  their  kindred,  breakers  of  treaties,  and 
murderers.^ 

The  Spartan  judges,  prejudiced  in  favor  of  their  Theban  alHes, 
gave  judgment  against  the  Plataeans.  Two  hundred  were  put  to 
death,  and  with  them  twenty-five  Athenians  who  had  helped  to 
defend  the  city.  The  women  were  given  into  slavery.  The  city 
with  all  its  territory  was  delivered  into  the  hands  of  the  Thebans. 
They  soon  levelled  all  the  houses  to  the  ground,  and  out  of  the 
material  built  a  vast  inn,  intended  for  the  use  of  the  cultivators  of 
the  surrounding  fields,  as  well  as  for  the  accommodation  of  pilgrims 

abhorrence  with  which  the  action  of  the  Spartans  was  regarded  by  the  historian,  and 
by  all  right-feeling  men  in  Greece, 
i  Thucyd.  iii.  61-67. 


306  BEGINNING  OF  WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

to  the  place.  A  great  temple  dedicated  to  Hera  proclaimed  the 
sanction  of  the  gods  as  to  all  that  had  been  done. 

Sedition  at  Corcyra  (427  b.c).  —  The  city  of  Corcyra,  whose 
contention  with  Corinth  had  been  one  of  the  proximate  causes  of 
the  war  (p.  270),  became  about  this  time  the  scene  of  a  most  vio- 
lent domestic  revolution,  which  issued  in  massacres  that  appalled 
even  the  Greeks  themselves,  accustomed  as  they  were  to  the 
shedding  of  each  other's  blood  in  their  party  quarrels. 

The  trouble  arose  through  an  attempt  of  the  ohgarchs  to  over- 
throw the  government  of  the  democracy.  A  terrible  battle  was 
fought  in  the  streets  of  the  city.  Even  the  women  took  part  in 
the  fight,  and  flung  down  tiles  from  the  roofs  of  the  houses  upon 
the  heads  of  the  combatants.  Finally,  the  ohgarchs,  hard  pushed, 
set  the  city  afire,  and  it  narrowly  escaped  complete  destruction. 
The  people,  however,  ultimately  got  the  upper  hand.  They  fell 
upon  the  oligarchs  wherever  they  chanced  to  find  them,  and  put 
them  to  death. 

Ostensibly  the  oligarchs  were  killed  because  they  had  attempted 
to  destroy  the  democratic  constitution  of  the  city ;  "  but  in  fact," 
says  Thucydides,  "some  were  killed  from  motives  of  personal 
enmity,  and  some  because  money  was  owing  to  them,  by  the  hand 
of  their  debtors.  Every  form  of  death  was  to  be  seen,  and  every- 
thing and  more  than  everything  that  commonly  happens  in  revolu- 
tions happened  there.  The  father  slew  the  son,  and  the  suppliants 
were  torn  from  the  temples  and  slain  near  them ;  some  of  them 
were  even  walled  up  in  the  temple  of  Dionysus,  and  there  per- 
ished." ^  The  oligarchs  that  escaped  the  massacre,  some  five  or 
six  hundred  in  number,  collected  in  a  brigand  band,  and,  entrench- 
ing themselves  on  a  hill  in  the  island,  sallied  thence  and  harried 
the  surrounding  country. 

The  General  Demoralizing^  Effects  of  the  War. — The  sedition 
at  Corcyra  was  only  a  local  manifestation  of  a  species  of  infectious 
madness  which,  bred  by  the  war,  seems  to  have  seized  upon  the 
whole    Hellenic  world.      Everywhere  in  the   Greek   cities   there 

1  iii.  81. 


SITUATION  IN   THE    WESTERN  COLONIES.  307 

existed  the  same  conditions  that  in  Corcyra  had  first  developed 
the  contagion.  Every  city,  Hke  Corcyra,  held  within  its  walls  two 
parties,  the  democratical  and  the  oligarchical,  of  which  the  former 
sought  to  carry  its  ends  by  calling  in  the  Athenians,  while  the 
latter  looked  for  help  to  the  Peloponnesians.  The  result  of  this 
political  situation  was  a  state  of  things  within  each  city  to  which 
we  can  find  no  parallel  in  the  experiences  of  modern  nations,  ex- 
cept perhaps  in  the  cities  of  France  in  the  Reign  of  Terror  during 
the  French  Revolution,  where  the  situation  in  both  its  domestic 
and  foreign  aspects  was  not  unlike  that  in  Greece  at  the  time  of 
the  Peloponnesian  War. 

Thucydides  draws  a  terrible  picture  of  the  condition  of  the 
Hellenic  world  thus  torn  at  once  by  the  passions  of  war,  the 
enmities  of  party,  and  the  violence  of  personal  hatred.  Words, 
says  the  historian,  changed  their  meaning.  What  was  once  re- 
garded as  virtue  was  now  looked  upon  as  vice.  "  He  who  could 
outstrip  another  in  a  bad  action  was  applauded.  .  .  .  The  tie  of 
party  was  stronger  than  the  tie  of  blood.  .  .  .  Revenge  was  dearer 
than  self-preservation.  Any  agreements  sworn  to  by  either  party, 
when  they  could  do  nothing  else,  were  binding  as  long  as  both 
were  powerless.  But  he  who  on  a  favorable  opportunity  first  took 
courage  and  struck  at  his  enemy  when  he  saw  him  off  his  guard 
had  greater  pleasure  in  a  perfidious,  than  he  would  have  had  in  an 
open,  act  of  revenge.  .  .  ."  ^ 

The  Area  of  the  War  is  widened :  Situation  in  the  Western 
Colonies.  —  The  war  grew  not  only  more  bitter,  but  it  spread  more 
widely.  Before  the  end  of  this  same  year,  the  fifth  since  the  first 
invasion  of  Attica,  the  cities  of  both  Sicily  and  Italy  had  become 
involved.  It  was  the  same  in  these  colonial  lands  as  in  the  mother 
country  :  here,  one  city  was  at  war  with  another ;  there,  within  the 
same  walls,  democrats  were  arrayed  against  aristocrats ;  here 
again,  it  was  Dorian  against  Ionian ;  while  there,  once  more,  the 
intermingling  of  racial,  political,  and  personal  causes  of  contention 
created  a  confused  battle  without  rational  ground  or  purpose. 

1  Thucyd.  iii.  82,  83. 


308  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO   PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

In  Sicily,  Dorian  Syracuse  was  at  war  with  Ionian  Leontini.  In 
the  main,  the  Ionian  colonies  were  on  the  side  of  Leontini,  while 
the  Dorian  towns  were  the  allies  of  Syracuse.  The  Athenians, 
interested  in  controlling  the  resources  of  these  western  regions, 
sent  a  fleet  to  aid  the  Leontines  and  their  allies ;  the  Peloponne- 
sians,  likewise  anxious  to  secure  Dorian  ascendency  in  this  colonial 
world  of  the  West,  lent  assistance  to  the  Syracusans  and  their 
confederates. 

The  military  movements  in  these  western  regions,  the  immediate 
results  of  which  were  of  no  great  moment,  we  will  pass  without 
notice,  and  proceed  to  narrate  the  circumstances  attending  an 
affair  in  the  home  land  which  had  a  very  important  bearing  upon 
the  course  of  events.^ 

The  Athenians  seize  and  fortify  Pylos  on  the  Messenian  Shore 
(425  B.C.).  —  In  the  summer  of  the  seventh  year  of  the  war,  the 
Athenians  equipped  a  squadron  of  forty  ships,  under  the  command 
of  Eurymedon  and  Sophocles,  for  service  in  the  Sicilian  waters. 
The  generals  were  instructed,  as  they  passed  Corcyra  on  their 
voyage  out,  to  give  the  popular  party  there  such  assistance  as  they 
could  against  the  oligarchs  in  the  hill  fortress  (p.  306)  ;  for  it  was 
known  that  the  Peloponnesians  had  dispatched  a  powerful  fleet 
to  the  island  to  help  the  exiled  nobles  to  regain  possession  of 
the  government. 

Demosthenes,  the  leader  of  the  Ambracian  expedition  of  the 
previous  year  (see  note  below) ,  accompanied  the  fleet,  having  been 
especially  authorized  by  the  Athenians,  upon  his  urgent  solicita- 

1  The  military  operations  of  the  sixth  year  of  the  war  (426  B.C.)  were  not  of  great 
importance.  During  the  year  the  Athenians  sent  out  three  fleets.  One  under 
Demosthenes  sailed  round  the  Peloponnesus  to  the  western  coast  of  Greece,  and 
there,  joined  by  the  Acarnanians  (see  map),  made  an  unsuccessful  attack  upon  the 
^tolians ;  but  later,  in  union  with  the  Acarnanians,  gained  a  great  victory  over  the 
allied  forces  of  the  Ambraciots  and  the  Peloponnesians  (battle  of  Olpse,  426  B.C.). 
Demosthenes  then  returned  home  with  his  ships  freighted  with  three  hundred 
armors  as  a  part  of  the  Athenian  share  of  the  spoils  of  the  Ambraciots.  A  second 
fleet  was  sent  out  under  Nicias.  This  ravaged  the  island  of  Melos,  and  then,  sail- 
ing to  the  Euboean  strait,  made  a  foray  into  Boeotia.  Still  a  third  fleet  was  sent  out 
to  Sicily.    This  expedition  accomplished  nothing. 


THE  ATHENIANS  SEIZE   AND   FORTIFY  PYLOS.       309 

tion,  to  employ  the  armament,  while  it  was  passing  around  the 
Peloponnesus,  in  any  way  that  he  might  deem  best.  This  com- 
mission, in  the  discretionary  authority  with  which  it  clothed  De- 
mosthenes, was  like  that  with  which  the  Athenians  had  once  before 
entrusted  Miltiades  (p.  158)  ;  but  it  was  destined  to  have  a  more 
fortunate  and  honorable  issue. 

Arriving  off  the  Laconian  coast,  the  Athenian  generals  learned 
that  the  Peloponnesian  fleet  was  already  at  Corcyra.  This  news 
made  Eurymedon  and  Sophocles  anxious  to  hurry  on  with  all 
possible  speed  so  that  their  aid  might  not  come  too  late  to  the 
Corcyr?eans.  But  Demosthenes  now  revealed  to  them  what  he 
had  had  in  mind  from  the  first.  This  was  to  establish  a  fortress 
at  Pylos,  a  rocky  promontory  on  the  Messenian  shore,  not  more 
than  forty-six  miles  from  Sparta.  The  idea  of  Demosthenes 
was  that  the  fort  would  afford  a  sort  of  rallying-point  and  strong- 
hold for  the  discontented  Messenians,  and  would  effect  a  per- 
manent blockade  of  Laconia  on  that  side. 

A  tedious  storm  which  compelled  the  Athenian  ships  to  remain 
some  days  at  the  harbor  of  Pylos  gave  Demosthenes  time  to  argue 
the  matter  with  the  generals  and  the  soldiers.  The  generals,  per- 
suaded that  the  project  was  irredeemably  foolish,  would  not  listen 
to  him,  but  the  private  soldiers  took  to  the  idea ;  and  the  time 
hanging  heavily  on  their  hands,  they  set  themselves  to  building  a 
fort  on  the  headland,  becoming  so  interested  in  the  work  that,  in 
the  absence  of  proper  tools,  they  even  made  hods  of  their  backs 
for  carrying  the  mortar. 

Intelligence  of  what  the  Athenians  were  doing  at  Pylos  was 
carried  to  Sparta.  The  matter  did  not  at  first  cause  the  Spartans  at 
home  much  uneasiness,  as  they  imagined  that  whenever  they  were 
ready  to  do  so,  they  could  easily  drive  off  the  trespassers  :  besides 
nothing  could  be  done  at  once,  since  the  Peloponnesian  army  was 
away  on  its  usual  raid  into  Attica.  So  the  Athenians  were  allowed 
to  complete  their  work  without  molestation.  When  it  was  done, 
Demosthenes  was  left  with  five  ships  to  hold  the  place,  while  the 
remainder  of  the  fleet  went  on  to  Corcyra. 


310 


BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 


PYLOS 


When  the  Peloponnesian  army  beyond  the  Isthmus  learned  of 
the  fortification  of  Pylos,  it  straightway  returned  home,  since  it 
was  accomplishing  but  little  in  Attica,  and  the  Spartans  particu- 
larly felt  concern  regarding  this  new  move  of  the  enemy. 

The  Spartans,  trying  to  dislodge  the  Enemy,  are  shut  up  in 
Sphacteria.  —  If  any  of  the  Spartans,  as  is  asserted,  at  first  made 
light  of  this  occupation  of  their  coast  by  the  Athenians,  they  all 
very  soon  began  to  realize  that  they  had  a  serious  matter  on  hand. 
They  collected  at  once,  for  the  driving-out  of  the  intruders,  all 
their  own  forces,  summoned  the  allies  to  muster  their  contingents 

in  haste,  and  recalled  from  Corcyra 
the  fleet  destined  for  Sicily.  Demos- 
thenes, learning  of  the  preparations  of 
the  Peloponnesians  to  attack  him,  sent 
a  hasty  message  to  the  general  of  the 
Athenian  fleet  requesting  him  to  return 
at  once  to  his  rehef. 

The  Peloponnesian    fleet  and  army 
having  assembled   at  Pylos,  the  Athe- 
nian garrison  was  besieged  by  sea  and 
land.     Lying   in   the    entrance  to  the 
harbor    at    Pylos    is    a    small    island, 
named    by    the    ancients    Sphacteria. 
Upon  this  islet  the  Spartans  landed  a 
body  of  hoplites  with  their  attendant 
Helots.     Their  intention  was  to  block  up  the  passage  to  the  har- 
bor on  either  side  of  the  island,  and  thus  prevent  the  entrance 
of  the  Athenian  fleet,  whose  arrival  they  were  expecting. 

On  the  third  day  of  the  siege  the  Athenian  ships  arrived  with 
succor  for  Demosthenes.  On  the  following  day  they  sailed  into 
the  harbor,  —  the  entrance  to  which  the  Peloponnesians  had  not  yet 
blocked,  —  attacked  and  defeated  the  enemy's  fleet,  and  thus  en- 
closed and  imprisoned  on  the  island  of  Sphacteria  the  men  who 
had  been  stationed  there. 

When  the  news  of  the  situation  at  Pylos  was  carried  to  Sparta, 


SPARTANS  SUE  FOR  PEACE  AT  ATHENS.  311 

there  was  great  excitement ;  for  among  the  men  shut  up  in  the 
island  were  many  of  the  most  influential  citizens  of  the  city.  De- 
spairing of  being  able  to  rescue  them,  the  Spartans  resolved  to  con- 
clude a  truce  with  the  Athenian  generals,  and  to  send  to  Athens 
to  seek  terms  of  peace. 

The  conditions  of  the  truce  were,  that  the  Lacedaemonians 
should  give  up  to  the  Athenians  all  their  ships  at  Pylos  and  on 
the  Laconian  coast,  which,  however,  were  to  be  restored  at  the 
end  of  the  truce,  without  diminution  or  harm ;  and  that  the 
Athenians  should  allow  the  Spartans  to  carry  to  the  men  on 
the  island  daily  supplies  of  food. 

The  Spartans  sue  for  Peace  at  Athens. — The  truce  having  been 
arranged,  Spartan  envoys  set  out  for  Athens  to  negotiate  respecting 
a  permanent  peace.  In  return  for  the  surrender  of  the  men  on  the 
island,  they  offered  to  the  Athenians,  in  the  name  of  the  Spartan 
state,  peace  and  a  friendly  alliance.  They  urged  the  Athenians, 
now  that  they  had  it  in  their  power  to  do  so,  to  put  an  end  to  the 
war  that  was  wasting  all  Hellas,  and  dwelt  upon  the  advantages 
that  would  accrue  to  both  Sparta  and  Athens  from  the  alli- 
ance they  offered.  "  If  you  and  we  are  at  one,"  they  said,  "you 
may  be  certain  that  the  rest  of  Hellas,  which  is  less  powerful  than 
we,  will  pay  to  both  the  greatest  deference."  ^ 

These  terms  were  such  as  should  have  been  at  once  accepted 
by  the  Athenians.  But  the  reception  that  these  reasonable  pro- 
posals met  shows  how  completely  the  management  of  Athenian 
affairs  had  fallen  in  the  hands  of  unprincipled  politicians. 

The  demagogue  Cleon,  who  wished  the  war  to  go  on,  since  its 
continuance  would  afford  chances  for  his  advancement,  persuaded 
the  Ecclesia  to  reject  the  offer  of  the  ambassadors,  and  to  propose 
terms  which  he  knew  would  not  and  could  not  be  accepted  by  the 
Spartans.  These  terms  were  that  the  men  at  Sphacteria  should 
give  themselves  up  to  be  brought  to  Athens ;  and  that  the 
Spartans  should  restore  to  Athens  certain  places  which  she  had 
ceded  to  Sparta  at  the  time  of  the  Thirty  Years'  Truce  (p.  252,  n.). 

1  Thucyd.  iv.  20. 


312  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NIC  I  AS. 

The  result  was  the  return  of  the  envoys  to  Sparta  and  the  break- 
ing-off  of  the  negotiations. 

The  truce  was  now  at  an  end.  In  accordance  with  its  terms, 
the  Spartans  demanded  the  return  of  their  ships.  But  the  Athe- 
nians, pointing  to  a  clause  of  the  treaty  which  read,  "  If  either 
party  violate  this  agreement  in  any  particular,  however  slight,  the 
truce  is  to  be  at  an  end,"  accused  the  Spartans  of  having  violated 
the  agreement  in  several  particulars,  and  refused  to  give  up  the 
vessels.  When  we  notice  the  trivial  character  of  the  charges  which 
the  Athenians  preferred,  we  are  inclined  to  believe  that  the  inser- 
tion in  the  treaty  of  the  clause  they  quoted  was  all  a  device  to 
enable  them  to  retain  the  ships  without  an  open  violation  of  the 
agreement.  At  all  events,  the  Spartans  felt  that  they  had  been 
outrageously  dealt  with  in  the  matter.  This  affair  was  not  one  of 
the  least  of  the  many  roots  of  bitterness  that  nourished  the  inap- 
peasable  enmity  of  the  Spartans  towards  the  Athenians. 

The  Athenians  send  Cleon  to  Pylos.  —  The  islet  of  Sphacteria 
now  became  the  centre  of  the  war.  The  Athenians' kept  triremes 
constantly  cruising  round  the  island  throughout  the  day,  and  at 
night,  unless  the  sea  was  boisterous,  the  whole  fleet  lay  in  an 
unbroken  circle  about  it.  Meanwhile  the  Peloponnesians  watched 
the  fort,  and  harassed  its  defenders  by  incessant  attacks. 

The  Athenians  had  hoped  to  starve  the  men  at  Sphacteria  into^ 
a  quick  surrender  ;  but  a  multitude  of  Helots,  inspired  by  the  offer 
of  large  sums  of  money  together  with  freedom,  busied  themselves, 
at  great  risk  of  life,  in  provisioning  the  imprisoned  men.  Some 
who  were  skilful  divers  swam  across  the  harbor,  avoiding  the 
Athenian  ships  as  best  they  could,  and  dragging  after  them  skins 
filled  with  food  ;  others,  when  the  roughness  of  the  waters  made  it 
impossible  for  the  besiegers  to  watch  the  side  of  the  island  towards 
the  sea,  ran  their  loaded  boats  recklessly  through  the  surf,  caring 
nothing  if  their  ships  were  wrecked,  as  all  such  losses  were  made 
good  by  the  Spartans. 

The  Athenians  at  home  began  to  grow  impatient.  The  summer 
was  passing,  and  if  winter  should  come  before  the  capture  of  the 


THE  ATHENIANS  SEND    CLEON   TO  PYLOS.  313 

men  on  the  island,  the  siege  would  have  to  be  abandoned ;  for  it 
would  be  impracticable  during  the  stormy  season  to  maintain  a 
fleet  and  army  on  the  exposed  shore  of  Messenia.  There  was  now 
a  growing  regret  that  the  proposals  of  the  Spartan  ambassadors 
had  not  been  accepted.  The  people  were  angry  at  Cleon  for  the 
advice  he  had  given  them,  and  began  to  give  expression  to  their 
feelings.  Cleon  had  the  assurance  to  pronounce  exaggerated  and 
false  the  reports  that  were  being  brought  from  Pylos.  The  mes- 
sengers who  had  brought  the  latest  gloomy  tidings  being  in  Athens, 
answered  Cleon  by  suggesting  to  the  people  that,  if  they  thought 
their  report  was  false,  they  should  send  messengers  of  their  own  to 
see  how  things  stood.  The  Athenians,  acting  upon  this  suggestion, 
chose  for  one  of  the  commissioners  Cleon  himself. 

Cleon  knew  very  well  that  the  report  of  the  messengers  was  truth- 
ful, and  that  it  would  never  answer  for  him  to  allow  the  proposed 
commission  to  be  undertaken.  Therefore  he  changed  his  tactics. 
He  advised  the  people  not  to  waste  valuable  time  in  sending  com- 
missioners, but  to  dispatch  at  once  additional  ships,  and  then,  if 
affairs  at  Pylos  really  were  in  as  desperate  a  shape  as  represented, 
the  assistance  would  be  timely.  He  added,  aiming  his  sarcasm  at 
one  of  his  enemies,  Nicias,  that  "  if  the  generals  were  good  for  any- 
thing, they  might  easily  sail  to  the  island  and  take  the  men,  and 
that  this  was  what  he  would  certainly  do  himself  if  he  was 
general."  ^ 

What  followed  is  a  valuable  commentary  upon  the  Athenian 
character.  Nicias  at  once  took  Cleon  at  his  word,  and  in  the 
assembly  of  the  Ecclesia  formally  resigned  his  command  in  his 
favor.  Cleon,  having  had  no  idea  that  matters  would  take  such 
a  turn,  now  tried  to  retreat  from  his  ridiculous  position ;  but  the 
people,  who  were  getting  great  amusement  out  of  the  situation, 
insisted  upon  it  that  Cleon  should  be  general  and  lead  the  expedi- 
tion. There  was  nothing  else  for  Cleon  to  do,  if  he  would  not  be 
hopelessly  discredited,  but  to  accept  the  command,  and  lead  out 
a  fleet  to  Pylos. '  The  Athenians  gave  him  such  ships  and  troops 

1  Thucyd.  iv.  27. 


314  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

as  he  desired,  and  he  set  sail  from  Athens  with  the  boast  that  in 
twenty  days  he  would  be  back  bringing  with  him  the  Spartans 
alive  —  or  having  left  them  dead  on  the  island.  The  Athenians 
laughed.  "  Nevertheless,"  says  Thucydides,  "  the  wiser  sort  of 
men  were  pleased  when  they  reflected  that  of  two  good  things  they 
could  not  fail  to  obtain  one  —  either  there  would  be  an  end  of 
Cleon,  which  they  would  have  greatly  preferred,  or,  if  they  were 
disappointed  in  this,  he  would  put  the  Lacedaemonians  into  their 
hands."  ^ 

Cleon  captures  the  Spartans.  —  Having  arrived  at  Pylos,  Cleon, 
not  by  good  generalship,  but  through  good  fortune,  actually  did 
accomphsh  what  astonished  the  whole  Hellenic  world,  himself 
probably  included.  He  found  Demosthenes  just  on  the  point  of 
making  an  attack  upon  the  island,  —  as  a  fire  kindled  by  acci- 
dent had  burned  off  most  of  the  forest  upon  it  and  thus  made 
such  an  attempt  practicable,  —  and  he  had  the  good  sense  to  make 
Demosthenes  his  colleague  and  approve  his  plans.  The  attack 
was  made.  After  an  obstinate  fight,  the  Spartans,  being  crowded 
toward  one  end  of  the  island,  were  completely  surrounded. 

They  must  now  either  surrender  or  die.  Both  Cleon  and 
Demosthenes  were  anxious  to  take  them  prisoners  to  Athens,  and 
accordingly  offered  them  terms  of  surrender.  They  asked  for 
permission  to  consult  with  their  fellow-citizens  on  the  mainland. 
In  reply  to  their  question  as  to  what  they  should  do,  they  received 
this  message :  "  Act  as  you  think  best,  but  do  not  dishonor 
yourselves." 

After  receiving  this  answer,  they  held  a  council,  and  decided  to 
surrender.  There  were  remaining  of  the  four  hundred  and  twenty 
heavy-armed  men  who  had  landed  on  the  island,  two  hundred 
and  ninety-two,  of  which  number  about  one  hundred  and  twenty 
were  Spartans,  some  of  them,  as  has  been  said,  members  of  the 
best  families  at  Sparta.     All  the  prisoners  were  carried  to  Athens. 

The  Significance  of  the  Event.  —  The  surrender  of  Spar- 
tan soldiers  had  hitherto  been  deemed  an  incredible  thing,  and 

1  iv.  28. 


CLEON  CAPTURES    THE   SPARTANS.  315 

hence  the  derisive  laughter  with  which  the  Athenians  had  met  the 
boastful  promise  of  Cleon.  "  Nothing  which  happened  during  the 
war,"  declares  Thucydides,  "  caused  greater  amazement  in  Hellas  ; 
for  it  was  universally  imagined  that  the  Lacedsemonians  would 
never  give  up  their  arms,  either  under  the  pressure  of  famine  or 
in  any  other  extremity,  but  would  fight  to  the  last  and  die  sword 
in  hand."^ 

It  was  difficult  for  men  to  persuade  themselves  that  these  Spar- 
tans who  had  given  up  their  arms  were  really  of  the  same  mould 
as  those  who  had  died  fighting.  This  feeling  was  reflected 
in  the  question  of  the  man  who  tauntingly  asked  one  of  the 
Spartan  prisoners,  "Where  are  your  brave  men  —  all  killed?" 
He  replied,  "  The  arrow  would  be  a  valuable  weapon  if  it  picked 
out  the  brave." 

The  men  who  had  surrendered  were  not  less  brave  than  those 
whom  the  enemy's  arrows  had  killed.  The  real  significance  of 
the  affair  was  the  revelation  it  made  of  the  relaxing  at  Sparta  of 
that  tense  mihtary  discipline  and  spirit  which  had  given  the  Spar- 
tans such  a  place  and  reputation  in  the  Hellenic  world.  It  was 
the  beginning  of  the  end.^  In  passing  from  Thermopylae  to  Pylos, 
we  cross  the  divide  which  separates  the  heroic  and  worthy  from 
the  degenerate  and  unworthy  period  of  Spartan  history.  For  the 
Spartans  were  simply  and  exclusively  fighters;  and  the  moment 
they  ceased  to  reverence  the  supreme  virtue  of  the  soldier,  their 
mission  was  ended,  and  there  was  for  them  thenceforth  no  work 
or  place  in  the  world. 

The  prisoners  were  held  at  Athens  as  a  sort  of  hostages  for  the 
security  of  Attica  in  the  future,  the  Spartans  being  informed  that 
if  they  made  another  invasion  of  the  country  all  the  captives 
should  be  put  to  death.  Pylos  was  garrisoned  with  Athenian  and 
Messenian  troops,  and  as  a  rendezvous  for  Messenian  exiles  and 
patriots   and   a   harboring-place   for  runaway  Helots,  became  a 

1  iv.  40. 

2  Yet  only  the  beginning.  For  a  later  exhibition  of  the  genuine  Spartan  spirit 
see  p.  410. 


316  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO   PEACE    OF  NIC  I  AS. 

thorn  in  Sparta's  side.  So  distressed  indeed  were  the  Spartans 
that  they  felt  constrained  to  enter  again  into  negotiations  with  the 
Athenians  respecting  terms  of  peace.  But  the  Athenians  held  too 
advantageous  a  position  to  feel  inclined  to  offer  to  their  enemy 
terms  which  they  could  accept.  So  nothing  came  of  the  negotia- 
tions. 

The  End  of  the  Corcyraean  Revolution  (425  b.c). — The  same 
summer  that  witnessed  the  end  of  the  affair  at  Pylos  saw  also  the 
end  of  the  Corcyraean  troubles.  The  Athenian  generals  Euryme- 
don  and  Sophocles,  who  after  the  surrender  of  the  men  at  Sphac- 
teria  had  returned  with  their  fleet  to  Corcyra,  there  aided  the 
democrats  in  forcing  a  surrender  of  the  oligarchs  entrenched 
among  the  hills  of  the  island  (p.  306).  The  terms  of  the  surrender 
were  that  the  oligarchs  should  not  be  handed  over  to  the  popular 
party,  but  that  their  fate  should  rest  in  the  hands  of  the  Athenian 
people.  As  the  captives  could  not  be  sent  to  Athens  at  once, 
they  were  put  on  a  little  island,  with  the  understanding  that  if 
any  of  them  attempted  to  escape  all  should  be  given  up  to  the 
democratic  party  at  Corcyra. 

The  leaders  of  this  party  devised  a  trick  for  the  undoing  of  the 
captives.  They  sent  persons  to  them  who,  representing  them- 
selves as  friendly  to  them,  pretended  to  reveal  a  plot  whereby 
they  were  to  be  delivered  over  to  their  enemies  in  the  city.  They 
then  urged  them  to  try  to  escape  from  the  island,  and  offered  to 
provide  them  ships  for  the  attempt. 

The  captives  fell  into  the  trap,  made  an  attempt  to  escape, 
were  of  course  taken  in  the  act  by  the  Athenians,  and  then,  in 
accordance  with  the  terms  of  the  agreement,  handed  over  to  the 
Corcyraean  democrats.  The  Corcyraeans  put  them  to  death  in  a 
mode  worthy  the  instincts  and  ingenuity  of  savages.  "  They  took 
the  prisoners  and  shut  them  up  in  a  large  building ;  then  leading 
them  out  in  bands  of  twenty  at  a  time,  they  made  them  pass 
between  two  files  of  armed  men ;  they  were  bound  to  one  another, 
and  were  struck  and  pierced  by  the  men  on  each  side,  whenever 
any  one  saw  among  them  an  enemy  of  his  own ;  and  there  were 


CYTHERA    SEIZED   BY  THE   ATHENIANS.  317 

men  with  whips,  who  accompanied  them  to  the  place  of  execution 
and  quickened  the  steps  of  those  who  lingered."  ^ 

After  sixty  had  been  massacred  in  this  manner,  those  remain- 
ing inside  the  building,  becoming  informed  of  what  was  going  on, 
refused  to  leave  the  place,  and  barricaded  the  doors.  Their 
enemies  thereupon  tore  holes  in  the  roof  and  flung  tiles  and  shot 
arrows  down  among  the  captives  until  all  either  were  killed  by  the 
missiles  or  had  in  despair  put  an  end  to  their  own  Hves. 

This  was  the  end  of  what  was  known  as  the  ''  Corcyrsean  Sedi- 
tion." It  could  but  be  the  end,  for  the  popular  party  had  now 
annihilated  their  enemies. 

Cythera  seized  by  the  Athenians  (424  b.c).  —  Another  mis- 
fortune similar  to  that  which  they  had  suffered  in  the  occupation 
of  Pylos  by  their  enemies,  befell  the  vSpartans  the  year  after  that 
event. 

The  island  of  Cythera,  lying  just  off  the  shore  of  Laconia,  had 
from  early  times  been  in  the  hands  of  the  Spartans,  and  was  by 
them  carefully  guarded,  since  it  was  a  sort  of  watch-post  for  the 
Laconian  shore,  and  a  favorably  situated  call-station  for  ships  from 
Egypt  and  the  African  coast. 

Against  this  island  the  Athenians  sent  a  fleet  of  sixty  vessels. 
The  expedition  was  successful  and  the  place  was  made  a  second 
Pylos.  Laconia  was  virtually  blockaded ;  its  shores  were  inces- 
santly harassed,  and  the  whole  land  kept  in  a  state  of  constant 
terror  and  alarm.  The  Spartans  became  disheartened,  inasmuch 
as  misfortune  was  a  new  experience  for  them,  and  believing  that 
fate  was  against  them,  they  moved,  if  at  all,  with  hesitation  and 
timidity. 

The  Athenians  defeated  at  Delium  (424  b.c).  —  But  the  gloom 
that  had  settled  upon  the  affairs  of  the  Spartans  was  the  darkness 
that  precedes  the  dawn.  Matters  soon  began  to  assume  a  brighter 
look.  Both  in  Boeotia  and  on  the  Thracian  shore  the  Athenians 
met  with  defeat  and  loss. 

Some  leaders  of  the  democratic  party  in  Boeotia  had  secretly 

1  Thucyd.  iv.  47. 


318  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  N I  CI  AS. 

planned  a  general  revolution  in  the  cities  there,  whereby  power 
was  to  be  wrested  from  the  hands  of  the  oligarchs,  popular  con- 
stitutions were  to  be  established,  and  the  whole  country  thus  revo- 
lutionized was  to  be  transferred  from  the  Peloponnesian  to  an 
Athenian  alliance.  Communications  were  entered  into  with  the 
Athenians,  who  were  to  assist  the  revolutionists  by  invading  Boeotia 
both  from  the  side  of  the  Corinthian  Gulf  and  that  of  Euboea. 
The  Athenians  were  to  make  their  attacks  simultaneously,  and  the 
Boeotian  democrats  were  to  act  in  concert  with  them  and  betray 
certain  places  into  their  hands. 

Upon  the  eve  of  its  accomplishment  the  plot  became  known  to 
the  Spartans,  who  warned  their  Boeotian  friends.  The  places  that 
were  to  have  been  betrayed  into  the  hands  of  the  Athenians  were 
at  once  secured,  and  every  precaution  taken  against  the  conspira- 
tors. 

The  Athenians,  however,  notwithstanding  that  the  original  plans 
had  thus  been  marred,  made  a  threatening  invasion  of  Boeotia 
from  the  side  of  Euboea.  With  an  army  embracing  all  their 
forces,  —  citizens,  metics,  and  strangers,  —  under  the  lead  of 
Hippocrates,  they  seized  Delium,  on  the  Boeotian  shore  close  to 
the  boundary  between  Boeotia  and  Attica,  and  fortified  it,  pro- 
posing to  establish  a  permanent  garrison  there,  and  thus  make  of 
it  a  sort  of  Boeotian  Pylos.  In  the  construction  of  their  fort,  the 
Athenians  utilized  the  walls  of  a  temple  of  Apollo  that  stood  on 
the  spot,  and  used  the  stones  and  brick  of  neighboring  houses 
which  they  tore  down,  as  well  as  the  vines  and  trees  of  the  sur- 
rounding vineyards  and  orchards. 

While  the  Athenians  were  occupied  with  this  work,  the  Boeotians 
were  mustering  near  by  at  Tanagra  all  their  available  forces.  By 
the  time  these  had  gathered,  the  Athenians  had  finished  their  fort 
and  their  main  army  was  on  its  march  towards  home,  having 
already  crossed  the  frontier  into  Attica.  After  some  hesitation, 
the  Boeotians  resolved  to  follow  the  Athenians  into  their  own  terri- 
tory, and  to  punish  them  not  only  for  their  intrusion  into  Boeotia, 
but  also  for  their  desecration  of  the  sacred  precincts  of  Apollo. 


BRAS/DAS  SUGGESTS  A   NEW   CAMPAIGN.  319 

Surely  the  god  whose  temple  had  been  so  impiously  violated 
would  help  them. 

The  two  armies  came  together  on  the  border  between  Boeotia 
and  Attica.  The  opposing  forces  were  unusually  large.  The 
Boeotians  had  about  seven  thousand  heavy-armed  and  over  ten 
thousand  light-armed  men,  a  thousand  horse,  and  five  hundred 
targeteers.  The  Theban  troops  were  drawn  up  twenty-five  deep. 
The  Athenians,  as  we  have  seen,  had  marched  out  in  full  strength. 
They  had  seven  thousand  heavy-armed  men  drawn  up  seven  deep, 
and  of  other  troops  a  number  much  greater  than  the  correspond- 
ing forces  of  the  enemy,  but  unfortunately  these  were  ill-armed. 

After  a  hard  fight  along  the  greater  part  of  the  opposing  lines, 
and  much  pushing  and  crowding  of  the  deep-ranked  hoplites,  the 
Athenians  at  one  point  were  forced  back  and  at  another  thrown 
into  a  panic  by  an  unexpected  attack  of  cavalry, — and  the  day 
was  lost.  The  fugitives  scattered  in  all  directions,  some  fleeing  to 
the  hills  and  others  to  the  sea-shore  and  to  Delium.  The  defeat 
was  complete.  Almost  a  thousand  Athenians  lay  dead  on  the 
field,  together  with  their  general  Hippocrates. 

After  the  battle  the  Athenians  sent  a  herald  to  the  Boeotian 
camp  asking  permission  to  bury  their  dead.  On  the  ground  that 
they  had  trespassed  on  holy  soil,  had  desecrated  the  temple  of 
Apollo,  and  used  for  common  purposes  the  holy  water,  the  request 
was  refused  them  —  unless  they  should  give  up  Delium.  To  the 
Boeotian  charges  of  impiety,  the  Athenians  urged  the  necessities 
of  war  as  their  excuse  for  having  done  the  things  complained  of, 
and  said  they  did  not  believe  the  gods  themselves  would  judge 
very  harshly  such  trespasses.  They  had  not  acted  in  a  spirit  of 
irreverence. 

The  Boeotians  now  attacked  the  fort  at  Delium,  and  after  a 
siege  of  seventeen  days  succeeded  in  taking  it.  As  soon  as  the 
Boeotians  had  regained  possession  of  Delium,  they  allowed  the 
Athenians  to  gather  and  care  for  their  dead. 

The  Spartan  Brasidas  suggests  a  New  Plan  of  Campaign 
against  Athens.  —  The  arena  of  the  war  now  shifts  to  the  Thra- 


320  BEGINNING  OF  WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NIC  I  AS. 

ciaii  shore,  and  assumes  a  somewhat  different  character.  Up  to 
this  time  Sparta  had  in  general  restricted  her  operations  to  an 
annual  raid  into  Attica,  which,  while  annoying  to  the  Athenians, 
left  their  war  strength  essentially  unimpaired.  In  the  meantime 
the  Athenians,  through  the  occupation  of  Pylos,  Cythera,  and  other 
places,  had  established  a  permanent  blockade  of  the  Peloponnesus. 
Seven  years  of  the  war  had  now  passed  since  the  first  blow  was 
struck,  and  so  far  from  Sparta's  promise  to  emancipate  the  cities 
enslaved  by  Athens  having  been  fulfilled,  she  herself  was  being 
held  in  close  siege,  with  more  than  a  hundred  of  her  citizens  in 
captivity  at  Athens. 

From  this  humiliating  condition  Sparta  was  rescued  by  the 
ability  and  energy  of  her  general  Brasidas,  who  had  distinguished 
himself  at  Pylos.  Brasidas  saw  clearly  that  if  Sparta  was  ever 
to  bring  the  war  to  a  successful  termination,  she  must  at  once 
adopt  a  wholly  new  policy  in  its  prosecution.  Athens  was  unassail- 
able by  land  —  five  resultless  campaigns  beyond  the  Isthmus  had 
demonstrated  this.  Besides,  a  repetition  of  these  expeditions  was 
now  prevented  by  the  threat  of  the  Athenians  to  put  to  death  the 
Spartan  prisoners  should  Attica  again  be  invaded.  Athens  must 
be  reached  through  her  allies  and  colonies.  The  tributary  cities 
of  her  empire  were  ready  to  revolt,  as  witnessed  the  revolution  at 
Potidsea  and  at  Mytilene.  Could  they  be  assured  of  effective  help 
from  the  Peloponnesians,  they  would  all  instantly  throw  off  the 
hated  yoke,  and  strike  for  independence. 

But  this  empire  of  the  Athenians  was  a  maritime  empire,  and 
was  maintained  by  the  naval  power  of  Athens ;  hence  Sparta  could 
do  nothing  in  the  way  of  carrying  out  the  policy  suggested,  with- 
out a  fleet  equal  to  that  of  the  enemy.  Brasidas  proposed  to 
create  such  a  fleet  out  of  the  resources  of  the  Athenian  empire 
itself.  His  plan  was  to  stir  to  revolt  some  group  of  the  tributary 
cities  of  Athens,  and  then,  working  from  this  centre  of  defection, 
to  spread  the  revolt  as  widely  as  possible. 

For  the  initiation  of  his  policy,  Brasidas  chose  the  Thracian 
shore,  one  of  the  most  important  of  the  possessions  of  Athens  ;  for 


BJ^ASTDAS  SUGGESl'S  A   NEIV   CAMPAIGN.  321 

from  the  prosperous  tribute- paying  cities  here  Athens  drew  large 
revenues,  while  the  forests  that  covered  the  mountains  suppUed 
in  great  abundance  timber  for  the  building  of  her  ships.  To 
this  region  he  could  lead  troops  by  land,  and  when  once  it  had 
been  separated  from  the  Athenian  empire,  —  and  already  some  of 
the  cities  there  were  in  open  revolt  against  Athens  and  asking  the 
Peloponnesians  for  aid,  —  its  inexhaustible  resources  could  be  used 
by  the  Spartans  for  the  creation  of  a  fleet  to  be  employed  in  aid- 
ing the  islands  of  the  .4Lgean  and  the  coast  towns  of  Asia  Minor  to 
free  themselves  from  x\thens.  These  emancipated  cities  could  be 
depended  upon  to  join  their  ships  to  those  of  the  liberators,  and 
the  united  armaments  of  the  Hellenic  world  would  then  be  turned 
against  the  Tyrant-city.  We  shall  see  that  this  is  exactly  what 
happened  in  the  end. 

Brasidas  stood  alone,  or  almost  alone,  at  Sparta.  Most  of  the 
Spartans  regarded  his  plan  as  partaking  of  the  adventurous.  It 
was,  indeed,  in  its  wide  outlook  rather  an  Athenian  than  a  Spartan 
conception.  And  Brasidas  had  something  of  the  Athenian  in  his 
mental  make-up.  In  his  restless,  enterprising,  energetic  disposi- 
tion, he  departed  widely  from  the  Spartan  type,  and  as  closely 
approached  the  Attic.  Moreover,  he  possessed  the  gift  of  elo- 
quence, a  peculiarly  Athenian  endowment,  and  something  rare  in 
a  Lacedaemonian. 

But  Brasidas  had  asked  only  for  a  force  of  seven  hundred 
Helots,  —  Spartan  citizens  could  not  of  course  be  taken  on  so 
long  an  expedition  as  Brasidas  proposed,  —  and  as  the  Spartans 
were  at  this  time,  on  account  of  the  occupation  of  Pylos  and 
Cythera  by  the  enemy,  in  momentary  fear  of  a  revolt  of  the 
Helots,  they  were  not  unwilling  to  grant  his  request,  and  thereby 
get  rid  of  the  most  dangerous  of  this  class  of  the  population.  If 
nothing  else  was  accomplished,  it  was  thought  possible  that  the 
expedition  might  result  in  the  Spartans  getting  possession  of  one 
or  more  cities  which,  in  the  next  negotiations  for  peace,  might  be 
offered  in  exchange  for  Pylos  and  the  other  places  in  possession 
of  the  Athenians. 


322  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

Accordingly,  Brasidas  was  furnished  with  his  Httle  servile  army, 
and  set  out  on  his  adventurous  undertaking,  which  was  not  alto- 
gether unlike  Hannibal's  in  the  great  fight  between  Carthage  and 
Rome.  There  was  this  difference,  however  :  Hannibal's  expecta- 
tion that  when  once  he  had  carried  the  war  into  Italy  the  allies 
and  colonies  of  Rome  would  hail  him  as  a  liberator,  were  bitterly 
disappointed ;  while  Brasidas'  hope,  better  founded,  was  reason- 
ably realized,  and  hence  the  success  of  his  policy  to  carry  the  war 
among  the  aUies  of  the  enemy  ensured. 

Brasidas  in  the  Thracian  Region  (424-423  b.c).  —  It  was  in 
the  summer  of  the  year  424  B.C.  that  Brasidas  set  out  from  the 
Isthmus  for  the  Thracian  shore  with  a  force  of  seventeen  hundred 
heavy-armed  men,  seven  hundred  being  the  Helots  that  the  Spartan 
state  had  furnished  him,  and  the  remainder  mercenaries  whom  he 
had  picked  up  in  different  parts  of  the  Peloponnesus.  He 
traversed  Boeotia  and  then  marched  on  through  Thessaly,  being 
escorted  by  some  of  the  chief  men  of  the  country.  The  little 
army  came  near  being  stopped  here,  however,  and  turned  back 
by  the  common  people,  who  were  irritated  by  this  march  of  an 
armed  force  through  their  land,  and  especially  so  since  it  was 
aimed  at  the  Athenians,  for  whom  the  Thessalians  had  always 
entertained  the  most  friendly  feelings.  But  the  smooth  speech 
of  Brasidas  and  a  swift  march  carried  him  safely  through  the 
Thessalian  territory  into  the  country  subject  to  Perdiccas,  king 
of  Macedonia. 

After  having  given  somewhat  dubious  assistance  to  Perdiccas 
against  some  enemies  of  his,  Brasidas  proceeded  to  Acanthus  in 
Chalcidice,  one  of  the  most  important  of  the  tributary  cities  of 
Athens  in  those  regions.  The  people  of  Acanthus  were  divided 
in  their  opinion  in  regard  to  the  policy  of  admitting  the  Pelopon- 
nesians  within  their  walls.  Such  a  step  meant  rebellion  against 
Athens,  and  all  that  that  implied.  The  fate  of  Mytilene  was  yet 
fresh  in  memory,  and  the  Acanthians  were  not  sure  that  the 
Peloponnesians  would  be  able  to  save  them,  any  more  than  they 
had  saved  the  Mytilenaeans,  from  the  vengeance  of  the  Athenians. 


BRASIDAS  IN   THE    THRACIAN  REGION.  323 

However,  they  finally  consented  to  allow  Brasidas  to  come  alone 
into  the  city  for  the  purpose  of  talking  the  matter  over  with  them, 

Brasidas  represented  to  them  that  he  had  been  sent  among  them 
by  the  Spartans  in  order  to  make  good  the  promises  that  the  Pelo- 
ponnesians  had  made  at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  to  the  effect  that 
they  would  emancipate  all  the  cities  enslaved  by  Athens.  That 
the  Spartans  had  not  redeemed  their  promise  sooner  was  because 
the  war  had  not  gone  as  prosperously  with  them  as  they  had  hoped 
it  might.  But  he  was  now  come,  having  made  a  long  and  danger- 
ous journey  to  redeem  that  promise,  and  offered  himself  to  them 
as  their  liberator.  He  assured  them  that  the  Lacedaemonians 
would  respect  their  independence,  and  that  no  one  party  in  the 
city  n^ed  fear  that  they  would  be  delivered  up  to  their  poHtical 
enemies  :  he  had  not  come  among  them  to  be  "  the  tool  of  a 
faction."  The  liberty  that  he  brought  them  was  Hberty  for  all,  not 
for  a  few.  But  if  they  refused  to  accept  the  freedom  he  offered 
them,  and  open  their  gates  to  his  army,  then  he  would  be  forced 
to  regard  them  as  the  enemies  of  Sparta  and  her  allies,  and  would 
at  once  proceed  to  ravage  their  fields  and  make  war  upon  them  in 
every  way ;  for  it  could  not  be  endured  that  they  should  be  allowed 
to  stand  in  the  way  of  the  work  of  emancipating  the  Hellenes 
which  Sparta  and  her  allies  had  undertaken.^ 

The  Acanthians  were  persuaded,  —  the  love  of  liberty  and  the 
fear  of  having  their  vineyards  destroyed  concurring  to  bring  them 
to  the  resolve  to  revolt  from  Athens  and  join  the  Peloponnesian 
alliance.  The  gates  of  the  city  were  thrown  open  to  the  army  of 
Brasidas  —  and  that  day  saw  the  beginning  of  the  end  of  the  sea- 
empire  of  Athens.  Before  the  end  of  the  summer  Stageirus, 
another  tributary  city  of  Athens,  following  the  example  of  Acan- 
thus, revolted,  and  joined  the  Peloponnesians. 

The  following  winter  Brasidas,  strengthened  by  the  forces  of  the 

Chalcidian   cities^  that   had   now  joined    him,    marched   against 

Amphipolis,  on  the  banks  of  the  Strymon.     Arriving  in  front  of 

the   city,  Brasidas,    by   offering   reasonable    terms    of  surrender, 

1  Thucyd.  iv.  85-87. 


324  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NICIAS. 

quickly  brought  the  inhabitants  to  the  resoh^e  to  open  their  gates 
to  him.  He  hastened  the  negotiations,  for  the  reason  that  the 
Athenian  general  Thucydides,  the  historian,  was  at  the  island  of 
Thasos,  only  a  few  hours  distant,  with  a  squadron  of  seven  ships, 
and  he  feared  lest,  if  there  were  any  delay,  these  ships  might  bring 
reinforcements  to  the  place.  Thucydides,  as  soon  as  he  received 
intelligence  of  the  movements  of  Brasidas,  set  sail  for  Amphipolis, 
but  arrived  too  late  to  save  the  city.  It  was  on  account  of  this 
failure  ^  that  the  Athenians  banished  him,  and  thus  afforded  him 
the  opportunity  to  write  his  invaluable  history  of  the  war  — 
another  illustration  of  the  uses  of  adversity. 

A  Broken  Truce  (423  b.c).  —  The  revolt  from  Athens  now 
spread  rapidly  and  widely.  Many  cities  in  Chalcidice* joined 
Brasidas,  and  the  Athenians,  becoming  alarmed  for  their  remain- 
ing possessions  in  that  region,  manifested  a  readiness  to  listen  to 
proposals  for  peace.  The  Spartans,  notwithstanding  the  scales 
had  turned  so  decidedly  in  their  favor,  were  still  as  desirous  as 
ever  for  a  peace,  in  order  that  they  might  secure  the  release  of  the 
captives  at  Athens.  A  truce  for  a  year  was  agreed  upon,  during 
which  time  the  terms  of  a  permanent  peace  were  to  be  arranged. 
Each  party  was  to  retain  during  the  truce  all  the  places  in  its 
possession. 

As  soon  as  the  truce  had  been  ratified,  heralds  were  dispatched 
to  the  Thracian  shore  to  pubHsh  it  there.  Now  it  chanced  that 
during  the  interval  between  the  ratification  of  the  truce  and  the 
arrival  of  the  heralds  in  Chalcidice,  the  city  of  Scione  had  revolted 
from  the  Athenians  and  joined  Brasidas.  The  Athenians  demanded 
that  this  city  be  given  back  to  them,  since  the  revolt  had  occurred 
after  the  conclusion  of  the  truce.  Brasidas  refused  to  surrender 
the  place.  The  Athenians  were  furious,  and  refusing  to  listen  to 
the  Lacedaemonians,  who  wished  to  have  the  matter  referred  to 
arbitrators,  voted  to  send  instantly  an  expedition  against  Scione, 
and  to  put  to  death  every  man  within  the  walls  of  the  city. 

Meanwhile  another  Chalcidian  town,  Mende,  encouraged  by  the 

1  Whether  or  not  Thucydides  was  really  to  blame  for  the  failure  does  not  appear. 


THE   BATTLE    OF  AMPHIPOLIS.  325 

affair  at  Scione,  had  likewise  revolted  from  Athens,  and  had  been 
received  by  Brasidas  into  the  Peloponnesian  alliance.  This,  since 
previous  to  the  transaction  the  truce  had  been  published  in  Thrace, 
was  in  open  and  flagrant  violation  of  its  terms ;  but  Brasidas  was 
now  maintaining  that  the  Athenians  had  broken  the  agreement, 
and  that  in  consequence  it  was  not  binding  upon  him.  The 
Athenians  were  now  angered  beyond  measure,  and  pushed  forward 
energetically  their  preparations  for  retaking  both  places. 

The  Battle  of  Amphipolis  (422  b.c.)  :  Death  of  Cleon  and 
Brasidas.  —  The  forces  collected  for  the  enterprise  were  placed 
under  the  command  of  Nicias  and  Nicostratus,  and  in  a  short  time 
were  on  the  Thracian  coast.  Fortunately  for  the  Athenians, 
Brasidas  had  been  called  away  into  Macedonia  by  his  ally 
Perdiccas  to  aid  him  against  his  old  enemies.  Before  his  return, 
the  Athenians  had  recovered  the  town  of  Mende,  and  were 
besieging  Scione. 

This  was  the  situation  on  the  Thracian  shore  when  the  truce 
came  to  an  end.  Upon  its  expiration,  the  Athenians  sent  an 
additional  fleet  of  thirty  ships  to  Chalcidice.  This  armament  was 
under  the  command  of  Cleon,  who  had  from  the  first  opposed  the 
truce,  and  for  whose  war-policy  the  conduct  of  the  Peloponnesians 
in  Thrace  had  made  the  Athenians  almost  unanimous. 

Cleon  recovered  Torone,  sold  the  women  and  children  into 
slavery,  and  sent  the  men  as  prisoners  to  Athens.  Leaving  a 
garrison  in  the  place,  he  sailed  for  Amphipolis.  Here  the  Athe- 
nians and  their  allies,  in  what  is  known  as  the  battle  of  Amphipolis 
(422  B.C.)  suff"ered  a  decisive  defeat.  Cleon  himself  was  killed, 
and  Brasidas  was  mortally  wounded. 

The  Peace  of  Nicias  (421  b.c). — The  greatest  obstacles  in 
the  way  of  returning  peace  —  the  ambition  of  Brasidas  and  the 
demagogism  of  Cleon  —  were  now  removed.  Conservative  and 
peace-loving  men,  King  Pleistoanax  at  Sparta  and  Nicias  at  Athens, 
were  now  supreme  in  the  councils  of  their  respective  states.  And 
the  people,  too,  both  at  Sparta  and  at  Athens,  were  in  a  mood  to 
listen  to  moderate  and  sensible  advice.     The  disasters  of  Dehum 


326  BEGINNING  OF   WAR    TO  PEACE    OF  NIC  IAS. 

and  Amphipolis  had  made  the  Athenians  amenable  to  reason  ;  their 
self-confidence  had  been  thereby  rudely  shaken.  Moreover,  the 
revolt  of  so  many  of  their  Thracian  alhes  made  them  apprehen- 
sive lest  the  spirit  of  rebeUion  should  spread  among  their  other 
tributary  cities. 

The  Spartans,  on  their  side,  were  more  than  ever  inclined 
towards  peace ;  for  in  addition  to  all  the  reasons  urging  them 
thereto  at  the  time  of  the  ratification  of  the  recent  truce,  came 
the  fact  that  a  thirty  years'  truce  with  Argos  was  now  on  the  eve 
of  expiring,  and  they  feared  that  the  Argives,  who  refused  to 
renew  the  treaty  on  acceptable  terms,  would  take  advantage  of 
the  circumstances  to  join  the  Athenians,  and  attempt  to  regain 
their  lost  ascendency  in  the  Peloponnesus. 

So  negotiations  for  peace  were  opened,  which,  after  many 
embassies  back  and  forth,  resulted  in  what  is  known  as  the  Peace 
of  Nicias,  because  of  the  prominent  part  that  general  had  in  bring- 
ing it  about.  The  treaty  provided  for  a  truce  of  fifty  years.  The 
essential  condition  was  that  each  party  should  give  up  to  the  other 
all  prisoners  and  captured  places. 

In  addition  to  this  provision,  there  were  the  usual  clauses  rela- 
tive to  the  free  use  of  all  the  common  temples.  Any  persons  in 
the  surrendered  places  who  wished  to  migrate  were  to  be  allowed 
to  do  so,  and  to  take  their  property  with  them.  Any  controversy 
that  might  arise  was  to  be  decided  by  arbitration. 

The  winter  of  the  tenth  year  of  the  war  was  just  ending  as  the 
peace  was  concluded.  The  war  had  brought  no  manifest  gain  to 
either  the  Peloponnesians  or  the  Athenians,  but,  on  the  contrary, 
had  inflicted  upon  both  parties  heavy  losses,  and  stirred  up  hatreds 
which  were  destined  to  render  nugatory  all  the  provisions  of  the 
peace  now  nominally  established. 

References.  —  Jowett's  Thucydides,  ii.-iv.  ;  also  v.  1-26.  Plutarch,  life 
of  Nicias.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  iii.  pp.  53-208.  Grote,  History  of 
Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  v.  pp.  1-404;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  vi. 
pp.  75-426.  Cox,  Lives  of  Greek  Statesmen :  "  Kleon,"  "  Brasidas,"  and 
"Demosthenes." 


THE  ALLIES   OF  SPARTA   ARE   DISSATISFIED.         327 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

FROM   THE   PEACE  OF  NICIAS  TO  THE  SICILIAN   EXPEDITION. 

(421-416    B.C.) 

The  Allies  of  Sparta  are  dissatisfied  with  the  Treaty.  —  The 

key  to  the  main  part  of  the  history  of  the  seven  years  between  the 
Peace  of  Nicias  and  the  setting-out  of  the  great  Athenian  expedi- 
tion to  Sicily  is  found  in  the  dissatisfaction  of  the  alUes  of  Sparta 
with  the  provisions  of  that  treaty,  and  the  exploiting  of  this  situa- 
tion by  Argos ;  that  is  to  say,  the  taking  advantage  of  it  by  her  to 
regain  her  ancient  ascendency  in  the  Peloponnesus. 

Chief  among  the  dissatisfied  Spartan  confederates  were  the 
Corinthians.  They  were  angry  because  certain  places  ^  had  not 
been  given  back  to  them,  and  accused  Sparta  of  having  sacrificed 
her  allies  to  the  advancement  of  her  own  interests.  Specially 
bitter,  also,  was  the  feehng  against  Sparta  among  her  newly 
acquired  allies  or  dependents  in  the  Thracian  region :  for  Sparta 
had  undertaken,  in  accordance  with. the  provisions  of  the  treaty, 
to  restore  to  Athens  Amphipolis  and  the  Chalcidian  cities  which, 
as  a  result  of  the  expedition  of  Brasidas,  had  been  freed  from 
Athenian  control ;  but  the  inhabitants  of  these  places,  indignantly 
rejecting  the  treaty,  had  refused  to  be  transferred  to  their  former 
masters. 

The  Spartans,  interested  in  the  maintenance  of  the  treaty  be- 
cause they  were  anxious  to  secure  the  release  of  the  Spartan 
prisoners,  and  also  because  they  were  suspicious  of  the  intentions 

1  Sollium  and  Anactorium,  Corinthian  towns  on  the  Acarnanian  coast  which  the 
Athenians  had  captured  during  the  war. 


328         PEACE    OF  NICIAS    TO   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

of  the  x\rgives,  earnestly  urged  their  confederates  to  comply 
with  the  terms  of  the  peace ;  but  they  were  deaf  to  all  entreaties. 
Fearing  that  hostilities  might  break  out  anew,  with  Argos  in  addi- 
tion to  all  her  other  enemies  in  the  field  against  her,  Sparta  now 
hastily  entered  into  a  private  alliance  with  the  Athenians  to  force 
the  dissenting  allies  to  accept  the  treaty  (421  b.c).  At  this  time 
the  Spartans  taken  at  Sphacteria  were  given  up ;  the  Athenians, 
however,  retained  possession  of  Pylos.' 

Argos  takes  Advantage  of  the  Situation  and  makes  herself 
the  Head  of  a  new  Peloponnesian  League.  —  We  have  seen  that 
the  Corinthians  were  in  an  irritated  state  of  mind,  which  boded  no 
good  for  Sparta.  It  was  they  who  had  stirred  up  the  hostilities  at 
the  beginning,  and  it  was  they  who  now  fanned  the  embers  of  the 
war  into  a  raging  flame  again.  They  went  to  Argos,  and  per- 
suaded the  Argives  that  it  was  an  opportune  time  for  them,  by 
placing  themselves  at  the  head  of  a  league  of  all  the  Hellenic 
cities  opposed  either  to  Sparta  or  to  Athens,  to  regain  their 
ancient  ascendency  in  the  Peloponnesus. 

Circumstances  did  indeed  seem  to  favor  such  an  undertaking. 
Sparta's  military  reputation  had  received  a  severe  blow  by  the 
affair  at  Pylos,  as  well  as  by  her  entire  conduct  of  the  war, 
while  her  undisguised  selfishness  in  the  arrangements  of  the 
recent  treaty,  through  the  distrust  and  indignation  it  had  created 
among  her  confederates,  had  shattered  the  basis  of  the  Pelopon- 
nesian confederacy.  Moreover,  Argos  had  taken  no  part  in  the 
wasting  war  of  the  last  ten  years,  but  had  all  this  while  been 
steadily  developing  her  pubhc  and  private  resources.  There- 
fore the  Argives  were  quite  ready  to  embark  in  the  ambitious 
project  proposed  by  the  Corinthians. 

The    commissioners  whom  the  Argives  sent  among  the   cities 

1  The  Athenians  refused  to  surrender  this  place,  for  the  reason  that  the  Spartans, 
who  the  lot  had  decided  should  make  restitution  first,  had  failed  in  persuading  or 
forcing  their  allies  to  restore  the  places  they  had  acquired  in  the  course  of  the  war, 
and  to  observe  the  other  provisions  of  the  treaty.  But  since  the  Spartans  had 
already  given  up  all  the  Athenian  prisoners  in  their  hands,  they  could  fairly  claim 
the  surrender  of  the  Spartans  held  by  the  Athenians.    Thucyd.  v.  35. 


ATHENIAN- A R GIVE   ALUANCE.  329 

ilVdisposed  to  Sparta  to  propose  to  them  an  alliance  with  Argos, 
met  with  a  friendly  reception.  The  Arcadian  Mantineans  straight- 
way seceded  from  the  Lacedaemonian  confederacy,  and  entered 
into  an  alliance  with  the  Argives.  They  were  influenced  to  this 
step  by  the  circumstance  that  during  the  war  between  the  Athe- 
nians and  the  Peloponnesians  they  had  been  making  some  con- 
quests in  the  lands  around  them,  and  were  now  afraid  that  Sparta, 
relieved  of  all  fear  of  Athens,  would  compel  them  to  give  up  these 
new  acquisitions. 

This  act  of  the  Mantineans  caused  great  excitement  throughout 
the  Peloponnesus.  The  other  members  of  the  old  Peloponnesian 
league  were  ready  to  follow  the  example  of  Mantinea ;  for  they 
had  persuaded  themselves  that  Sparta  and  Athens  were  conspiring 
together  to  set  up  a  double-headed  tyranny  in  Hellas.  Sparta, 
unfortunately  for  herself,  never  succeeded  in  inspiring  her  allies 
with  confidence  in  her  professions  as  a  liberator. 

The  Eleans,  who  were  angry  with  the  Spartans  on  account  of 
some  real  or  imagined  wrong,  were  the  next  to  secede  from  the 
Lacedaemonian  league  and  to  join  the  Argive  alliance.  Next  the 
Chalcidian  cities  entered  the  growing  league  ;  and  a  short  time 
afterwards  the  Athenians,  without  formally  renouncing  the  recent 
private  convention  with  Sparta,  also  joined  the  new  confederacy. 

Alcibiades  and  the  Athenian-Argive  Alliance.  —  The  Athe- 
nians had  entered  the  new  alliance  under  somewhat  peculiar 
circumstances,  upon  which,  because  of  the  connection  of  this 
matter  with  later  events,  it  will  be  profitable  for  us  to  dwell  for 
a  moment. 

It  becomes  necessary  for  us  here  to  introduce  a  new  leader  of 
the  Athenian  demos,  Alcibiades,  who  played  a  most  conspicuous 
part,  not  only  in  Athenian  but  also  in  Hellenic  affairs,  from  this 
time  on  to  near  the  close  of  the  Peloponnesian  War.  Alcibiades 
was  a  young  man  of  noble  and  even  alleged  heroic  lineage,  —  he 
traced  his  descent  from  Ajax,  —  and  of  aristocratical  associations. 
He  was  versatile,  brilliant,  and  resourceful ;  but  unscrupulous, 
reckless,  and  profligate.     He  was  a  pupil  of  Socrates,  but  he  failed 


330 


PEACE    OE  NICL4S    TO   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 


to  follow  the  counsels  of  his  teacher.  His  escapades  kept  ail 
Athens  talking.  But  his  astonishing  orgies  only  seemed  to  attach 
the  people  more  closely  to  him,  for  he  possessed  all  those  personal 
traits  which  make  men  popular  idols.  His  influence  over  the 
democracy  was  unlimited.     By  the  unscrupulous  employment  of 

the  various  arts  known  to  the  suc- 
cessful demagogue,  he  was  able  to 
carry  through  the  Ecclesia  almost 
any  measure  tliat  it  pleased  him  to 
advocate. 

The  more  prudent  of  the  Athe- 
nians were  filled  with  apprehension 
for  the  future  of  the  state  under 
such  guidance.  The  noted  misan- 
thrope Timon  gave  expression  to 
this  feeling  when,  after  Alcibiades 
had  secured  the  assent  of  the  popu- 
lar assembly  to  one  of  his  impolitic 
measures,  he  said  to  him  :  "Go  on, 
my  brave  boy,  and  prosper ;  for  your 
prosperity  will  bring  on  the  ruin  of  all  this  crowd."  And  it  did, 
as  we  shall  see. 

Now  it  was  largely  through  the  influence  of  this  new  leader  that 
the  Athenians  had  been  led  to  join  the  new  Peloponnesian  league. 
He  had  a  personal  grievance  against  the  Spartans  because  he 
imagined  they  had  not  shown  him  proper  consideration  in  consult- 
ing Nicias  and  others  instead  of  him  in  the  negotiations  attending 
the  recent  truce ;  and  he  resolved  to  make  them  realize  that  they 
had  made  a  serious  mistake  in  preferring  others  to  him. 

So  when  the  Spartans  (420  B.C.)  sent  envoys  to  Athens  to 
dissuade  the  Athenians  from  entering  the  Argive  alliance,  to  which 
step  ambassadors  from  Argos  were  at  this  moment  urging  them, 
Alcibiades  set  to  work  to  ruin  the  Spartan  embassy  and  to  get  the 
Athenians  to  join  the  anti-Spartan  confederacy.  He  reached  his 
ends  by  means  of  a  trick.     The  envoys  had  inforihed  the  members 


Fig.  32.     ALCIBIADES. 


THE  BATTLE    OF  MANTINEA.  331 

of  the  council  that  they  had  been  invested  with  full  power  to  deal 
with  all  matters  in  dispute  between  Athens  and  Sparta.  Alcibi- 
ades  was  afraid  that  if  they  should  make  the  same  statement  before 
the  Ecclesia,  the  people  would  be  led  to  enter  into  negotiations 
with  them,  and  that  the  Argive  ambassadors  would  get  no  hearing. 
Accordingly  he  went  secretly  to  the  Spartan  envoys  and  told  them 
that,  if  they  would,  when  brought  before  the  Ecclesia,  deny  that 
they  had  had  given  them  full  power  to  conclude  a  treaty,  and  say  that 
they  had  authority  only  to  discuss  matters  and  to  report  thereon 
to  the  Spartans  at  home,  he  would  throw  his  influence  in  their 
favor  and  secure  the  prosperous  issue  of  their  embassy. 

The  Spartans  consented  to  do  as  Alcibiades  advised.  So  when 
they  came  before  the  Ecclesia,  and  were  asked  as  to  the  extent 
of  their  powers,  they  made  a  statement  exactly  contradictory  to 
that  which  they  had  previously  made  to  the  council.  Hereupon 
Alcibiades  arose,  and  instead  of  making  good  his  promise  to  the 
envoys,  denounced  them  as  men  with  dishonest  intentions,  who 
could  "not  tell  the  same  story  twice  alike."  Of  course  the  envoys 
were  utterly  discredited,  and  the  Athenians  would  have  nothing 
further  to  do  with  them.^ 

Alcibiades  now  easily  managed  the  remainder  of  the  business, 
and  soon  brought  it  about  that  the  Athenians  had  entered  into  an 
offensive  and  defensive  alliance  with  Argos  and  her  allies,  which 
was  "  to  continue  for  a  hundred  years  both  by  sea  and  land,  with- 
out fraud  or  hurt."  Such  were  the  circumstances  under  which 
Athens  became  a  member  of  the  new  Argive  confederacy.^ 

The  Battle  of  Mantinea  (418  b.c.)  re-establishes  Sparta's 
Hegemony  in  the  Peloponnesus.  —  It  now  began  to  look  as 
though  the  hegemony  in  the  Peloponnesus  was  about  to  be 
transferred  from  Sparta  to  Argos,  from  the  city  of  Menelaus  to 
the  land  of  Agamemnon.  The  Spartans  began  to  realize  that  if 
they  would  retain  their  old  position  of  leadership,  they  must  bestir 

1  Thucyd.  v.  43,  45. 

2  The  Corinthians,  because  the  new  alliance  had  now  become  offensive  as  well 
as  defensive,  withdrew  from  it  as  Athens  entered. 


332        PEACE    OF  MICIAS    TO  SICILIAN  EXPEDITlOiV. 

themselves.  In  the  summer  of  the  year  418  b.c,  mustering  their 
own  forces  and  the  contingents  of  such  states  as  still  remained 
faithful  to  them,  they  invaded  Argolis  with  a  great  army.  A  false 
movement  brought  the  Argive  army  into  a  position  where  it  was 
completely  surrounded  by  the  enemy  and  wholly  at  their  mercy. 
But  the  Spartan  king  Agis,  instead  of  pressing  his  advantage, 
weakly  granted  to  the  Argives  an  armistice,  and  then  caused 
the  various  contingents  of  his  army  to  disperse  to  their  several 
homes. 

When  Agis  reached  Sparta,  he  just  escaped  having  his  house 
pulled  down,  and  a  heavy  fine  imposed  upon  him  by  the  in- 
furiated people,  because  he  had  let  sHp  an  opportunity  such  as 
the  Spartans  could  not  expect  fortune  ever  again  to  afford  them 
of  annihilating  their  old  enemy  and  rival.  Agis  entreated  the 
people  not  to  inflict  upon  him  the  punishment  they  had  in  mind, 
and  promised  to  repair  his  mistake  by  some  worthy  achievement 
when  he  again  met  the  enemy.  They  yielded  to  his  entreaties ; 
but  unwilling  to  trust  to  his  judgment  again,  elected  a  board  of 
ten  counsellors,  whom  he  must  consult  in  all  military  affairs. 

An  opportunity  was  soon  afforded  Agis  to  make  good  his 
promise.  The  Argives,  under  the  persuasion  of  Alcibiades, 
treacherously  broke  the  truce  the  king  had  concluded  with  them, 
and  were  soon  again  in  the  field  against  Sparta,  and  threatening 
Tegea,  her  most  important  Arcadian  ally.  Sending  messengers 
to  the  Corinthians  and  the  other  Spartan  confederates  to  hurry 
with  their  several  contingents  to  Mantinea  in  Arcadia,  Agis 
hastened  with  the  whole  available  force  of  Laconia  to  the 
same  place  of  muster.  Near  Mantinea,  Agis  found  the  Argives 
with  the  Athenians  drawn  up  to  receive  him.  After  some  delay, 
yet  before  the  confederates  of  Sparta  had  arrived  from  the 
Isthmus,  the  battle  was  joined.  The  Lacedaemonians  moved  their 
lines  slowly  and  evenly  to  the  music  of  the  flute.  Their  steadi- 
ness and  valor  carried  the  day.  The  Argives  and  their  allies 
were  utterly  routed.  More  than  a  thousand  of  thek  dead 
covered  the  field.     Agis  had  atoned  for  his  former  error. 


THE   FALL    OF  MFLOS.  333 

The  battle  of  Mantinea  was  the-  most  important  after  that  of 
Delium  (p.  317)  which  had  thus  far  marked  the  war.  It  ruined 
forever  the  hopes  of  Argos  to  regain  her  ancient  leadership  in 
the  Peloponnesus.  It  restored  to  Sparta  that  ascendency  which 
recent  circumstances  had  so  nearly  destroyed.  It  wiped  out  the 
disgrace  of  Sphacteria,  and  did  much  to  re-establish  the  gready 
impaired  military  reputation  of  the  Spartans.^ 

The  Fall  of  Melos  (416  b.c). — The  period  whose  history  we 
are  following  closed  with  a  most  barbarous  transaction  on  the  part 
of  the  Athenians. 

The  pleasant  island  of  Melos,  which  is  one  of  the  westerly  lying 
of  the  Cyclades,  was  the  only  island  in  the  ^gean,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  Thera,  that  was  not  at  this  time  included  in  the  Athe- 
nian empire.  The  Melians  were  Dorians  and  regarded  Sparta  as 
their  mother  city. 

The  Athenians  determined  to  take  possession  of  this  island, 
being  moved  thereto  by  several  motives.  They  wished  to  round 
out  their  dominions  and  secure  a  "  scientific  frontier  "  for  their 
sea-possessions  in  that  part  of  the  ^gean.  Furthermore,  the 
events  of  the  last  few  years  had  shown  them  that  their  empire  on 
the  sea  was  not  unassailable,  and  they  feared  lest  the  Spartans 

1  After  the  battle  of  Mantinea  the  oligarchical  party  at  Argos  brought  the  city 
into  alliance  with  Sparta  and  overthrew  the  democratic  constitution.  The  people, 
however,  soon  afterwards  planned  a  successful  uprising  against  the  oligarchs,  and 
those  whom  they  did  not  kill  they  drove  into  exile  (417  B.C.).  Then,  renewing  the 
alliance  with  Athens,  they  began  with  great  zeal  to  build  long  walls,  like  those  of 
the  Athenians,  from  their  city  to  the  harbor,  five  miles  distant,  in  order  that  they 
might,  if  attacked  by  the  Lacedaemonians  on  the  land  side,  have  free  communica- 
tion by  the  sea.  But  the  Argives  were  not  so  fortunate  as  the  Athenians  were  in 
their  wall-building  operations;  there  was  no  Themistocles  at  Argos  to  manage  the 
matter.  Before  the  work  was  done  the  Lacedaemonians  with  their  allies  were  upon 
them,  although  it  was  in  the  midst  of  the  winter  season.  The  unfinished  walls  were 
levelled  to  the  ground,  but  the  city  itself  defied  the  enemy.  The  next  summer  the 
Athenians  sent  Alcibiades  with  a  fleet  of  twenty  ships  to  Argos  to  remove  from 
the  city  persons  dangerous  to  the  democracy.  Three  hundred  citizens  who  were 
regarded  with  suspicion  by  the  popular  party  because  of  their  Spartan  sympathies, 
were  arrested,  and  distributed  among  different  islands  belonging  to  Athens  in 
the  ^gean. 


334        PEACE    OF  NICIAS    TO   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

might  some  time,  working  throiigli  the  Dorian  population  of  the 
island,  get  possession  of  it,  and  make  it  the  basis  of  operations 
against  the  neighboring  islands  subject  to  Athens. 

Again,  the  independence  of  the  Melians  made  the  other  island- 
ers subject  to  Athens  discontented  and  restless ;  they  could  not 
see  why  they. should  pay  tribute  to  Athens  while  the  Melians  went 
free.  Hence  for  this  reason  the  Athenians  resolved  to  reduce  the 
island  to  the  same  condition  as  the  others. 

Added  to  these  motives  was  a  desire  for  more  lands,  like  the 
Euboean  and  Lesbian  fields,  for  distribution  among  Athenian 
citizens ;  and,  perhaps  what  weighed  more  than  all  else,  a  thirst  to 
revenge  upon  some  Dorian  people  the  wiping-out  by  the  Spartans 
of  the  Plataean  state  (p.  302). 

So  the  Athenians  in  the  summer  of  416  B.C.  sent  an  expedition 
to  the  island,  and  commanded  the  Melians  to  at  once  acknowledge 
the  suzerainty  of  Athens.  The  demand,  if  we  may  here  trust 
Thucydides'  account,  was  based  on  no  other  ground  than  Athenian 
imperial  interests  and  the  right  of  the  strong  to  rule  the  weak. 
*'  For  of  the  gods  we  beheve,"  —  thus  Thucydides  makes  the 
Athenian  envoys  speak,  —  "  and  of  men  we  know,  that  by  a  law  of 
their  nature  wherever  they  can  rule  they  will.  This  law  was  not 
made  by  us,  and  we  are  not  the  first  who  have  acted  upon  it ;  we 
did  but  inherit  it,  and  shall  bequeath  it  to  all  time."  ^ 

The  conviction  of  the  Athenians  as  to  this  lust  of  dominion  being 
a  law  of  human  nature  seems  to  have  been  complete  ;  and  surely 
the  conduct  of  the  nations  of  modern  Europe  in  deahng  with 
weaker  states  goes  far  towards  justifying  the  Athenians  in  speaking 
so  positively  of  its  inborn  nature  and  hereditary  character. 

The  Melians,  relying  on  the  righteousness  of  their  cause  and 
the  help  of  their  Lacedaemonian  kinsmen,  refused,  at  the  bidding 
of  Athens,  to  surrender  their  independence,  which,  according  to 
their  traditions,  they  had  enjoyed  for  seven  centuries. 

So  the  city  of  Melos  was  blockaded  by  sea  and  beset  by  land, 
and  in  a  few  months,  neither  the  gods  nor  the  Lacedaemonians 

1  Thucyd.  v.  105. 


THE  FALL    OF  MFLOS.  ZZS 

bringing  help,  the  whole  island  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Athenians. 
All  the  men  were  at  once  put  to  death,  and  the  women  and 
children  sold  into  slavery.  The  island  was  then  repopulated  by 
settlers  sent  out  from  Athens. 

The  Athenians  had  now  rounded  out  their  dominions  in  the 
^gean ;  and  Plataea  was  avenged.  But  the  Hellenic  world  never 
forgave  the  Athenians  for  the  crime  —  which  was  one  of  the  worst, 
because  so  unprovoked  and  so  deliberately  planned,  committed 
by  either  party  during  the  Peloponnesian  War. 

RErERENCES.  —  Jowett's  Thucydides,  v.  27-116.  Plutarch,  Life  of  Alci- 
biades.  Curtius,  JLisiory  of  Greece,  vol.  iii.  pp.  285-321.  Grote,  IListory  of 
Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  v.  pp.  405-515;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  vii. 
pp.  1-118. 


336  THE   SICILIAN   EXPEDITION. 


CHAPTER   XX. 

THE   SICILIAN    EXPEDITION. 

(415-413  B.C.) 

The  People  of  Egesta  ask  Aid  of  Athens. — In  the  seventeenth 
year  of  the  war  the  Athenians  resolved  upon  an  undertaking  that 
was  freighted  with  the  most  momentous  consequences  not  only  to 
themselves,  but  to  the  whole  Hellenic  world.  This  was  an  expedi- 
tion to  Sicily. 

The  immediate  occasion  of  their  sending  out  this  expedition 
was  an  appeal  for  help  from  the  city  of  Egesta  against  the  Dorian 
city  of  Selinus.  These  places  were  situated  on  the  western  coast 
of  Sicily,  and  were  engaged  in  a  quarrel  over  some  border  land 
and  some  other  trivial  matters.  Syracuse  was  giving  aid  to  the 
people  of  Selinus,  and  the  Egestaeans,  being  hard  pressed,  had 
sent  envoys  to  Athens  to  plead  for  assistance.  They  based  their 
request  on  the  ground  of  alleged  relationship ;  but  appealed  also 
to  the  enlightened  self-interest  of  the  Athenians  by  representing  to 
them  that  if  the  Dorian  Syracusans  should  be  allowed  to  get  all 
Sicily  in  their  hands,  then  they  would  without  question  join  their 
kinsmen  the  Peloponnesians  against  Athens,  and  overwhelm  the 
whole  Ionian  race. 

The  Athenians  sent  an  embassy  to  Sicily  to  look  into  the  situa- 
tion there.  The  report  they  brought  back  was  favorable ;  and 
weight  was  added  to  what  they  said  by  certain  envoys  from 
Egesta  who  had  accompanied  them  on  their  return.  These 
envoys  had  brought  with  them  silver  enough  to  pay  the  expenses 
of  a  fleet  of  sixty  ships  for  a  month  ;   together  with  promises  of 


DEBATE  IN   THE  ATHENIAN  ASSEMBLY.  337 

much  more  from  the  heaps  of  money  the  Egestaeans  had  stored 
up  m  their  treasury  and  in  their  temples.  Being  persuaded  by 
these  things,  the  Athenians  voted  to  send  to  Sicily  a  fleet  of  sixty 
vessels,  under  the  command  of  Alcibiades,  Nicias,  and  Lamachus.^ 

Debate  in  the  Athenian  Assembly  in  regard  to  the  Expedi- 
tion. —  The  resolution  to  engage  in  the  tremendous  enterprise 
seems  to  have  been  taken  lightly  by  the  Athenians,  which  was 
quite  in  keeping  with  their  usual  way  of  doing  things ;  but  a  few 
days  after  their  first  vote,  a  second  meeting  of  the  Ecclesia  having 
been  called  for  the  purpose  of  making  arrangements  for  the  equip- 
ment of  the  armament,  Nicias,  who  was  opposed  to  the  under- 
taking, tried  to  persuade  the  people  to  reconsider  their  original 
vote,  and  give  up  the  project.  This  opened  the  flood-gates  of 
a  regular  Athenian  debate. 

Nicias  stated  the  reasons  why  he  thought  the  proposed  expedi- 
tion should  be  abandoned.  His  first  point  was  that  the  situation 
at  home  was  such  as  to  render  it  very  unwise  for  them  to  send  so 
far  away  a  large  part  of  their  fighting  force.  The  treaty  with 
Sparta  was  stfll  in  force,  to  be  sure ;  but  only  nominally.  The 
Lacedaemonians,  chafing  under  a  treaty  that  was  extorted  from 
them  by  their  misfortunes,  only  awaited  a  pretext  and  a  favorable 
opportunity  —  such  as  the  departure  of  the  proposed  expedition, 
or  some  misfortune  to  it,  would  afford  —  to  attack  Athens.  The 
Chalcidian  cities  were  in  open  and  unpunished  revolt.  Other 
allies  were  watching  for  a  favorable  moment  to  rebel.  The  re- 
sentments of  old  enemies  were  not  extinguished  :  they  were  every- 
where smouldering,  and  ready  at  any  time  to  flame  into  wasting 
war.  The  Athenians  should  secure  well  their  present  empire 
before  attempting  to  conquer  a  new  one  in  the  western  world. 
The  difficulty  they  were  experiencing  in  maintaining  their  posses- 
sions in  Chalcidice  ought  to  suggest  to  them  the  certainly  greater 

1  The  generals  were  instructed  not  only  to  assist  the  Egestaeans,  but  also,  if  pos- 
sible, to  restore  the  Leontines  to  their  city,  from  which  they  had  been  driven  by  the 
Syracusans,  and  in  general  to  do  whatever  promised  to  further  the  interests  of 
Athens  in  the  island.     Timcyd.  vi.  8. 


338  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

difificulty  they  would  have  in  retaining  their  hold  upon  any  new 
territory  they  might  secure  in  the  more  remote  regions  of  Sicily. 

In  regard  to  what  the  Egestaean  envoys  had  said  respecting 
a  union  of  the  western  Greeks  and  the  Peloponnesians  against 
Athens,  the  speaker  maintained  that  there  was  no  danger  of  any 
such  alliance.  He  said  that  the  Sicilian  Greeks  would  never 
intermeddle  in  the  affairs  of  the  Greeks  in  the  home  land  for  fear 
of  stirring  all  the  states  there,  Dorian  as  well  as  Ionian,  to  unite 
against  them. 

Nicias  then  reminded  the  Athenians  that  there  were  still  great 
unfilled  gaps  in  their  ranks  made  by  the  plague,  and  by  a  war  that 
had  known  scarcely  any  real  intermission  during  sixteen  years. 
The  finances  of  the  state,  too,  needed  to  be  husbanded.  And  in 
this  connection  the  speaker  expressed  his  distrust  of  the  money 
promises  of  the  Egestaeans.  The  Athenians  might  take  his  word 
for  it,  they  would  have  not  only  all  the  fighting  to  do,  but  also  all 
the  bills  to  pay. 

The  speaker  now  proceeded  to  pay  his  attention  to  Alcibiades, 
who  was  the  real  instigator  of  the  whole  movement.  "  I  dare 
say,"  said  the  venerable  Nicias,  "  there  may  be  some  young  man 
here  who  is  delighted  at  holding  a  command,  and  the  more  so 
because  he  is  too  young  for  his  post ;  and  he,  regarding  only  his 
own  interests,  may  recommend  you  to  sail ;  he  may  be  one  who 
is  much  admired  for  his  stud  of  horses,  and  wants  to  make  some- 
thing out  of  his  command  which  will  maintain  him  in  his  extrava- 
gance. But  do  not  you  give  him  the  opportunity  of  indulging  his 
own  magnificent  tastes  at  the  expense  of  the  state.  Remember 
that  men  of  his  stamp  impoverish  themselves  and  defraud  the 
public.  An  expedition  is  a  serious  business,  and  not  one  which 
a  mere  youth  can  plan  and  carry  into  execution."  ^ 

The  old  statesman  and  general  then  appealed  to  the  citizens  of 
experience  and  mature  judgment  not  to  allow  grave  public  affairs 
to  be  thus  toyed  with  by  this  harebrained  youth,  and  those  like 
him,  with  whom  he  had  filled  the  benches  of  the  assembly.     He 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  12. 


DEBATE   IN   THE  ATHENIAN  ASSEMBLY.  339 

appealed  to  them,  by  a  fearless  holding-up  of  their  hands,  to  avert 
from  Athens  the  greatest  danger  that  had  ever  threatened  the  city. 
He  appealed  to  them  not  to  permit,  at  the  dictation  of  personal 
ambition  and  greed,  the  fleet  of  Athens  to  cross  the  Ionian  Sea, 
the  natural  boundary  of  the  Athenian  empire  towards  the  west,  in 
a  foolish  search  after  some  more  self-seeking  and  treacherous 
allies.^ 

This  speech  of  Nicias  summarizes  the  arguments  that  should 
have  weighed  with  the  Athenians  in  deterring  them  from  embark- 
ing in  the  hazardous  undertaking  that  they  had  in  mind. 
But  from  the  speeches  that  followed,  and  their  reception  by  the 
assembly,  it  was  evident  that  the  veteran  general  had  not  carried 
his  audience  with  him.  He  was  supported  by  a  few  speakers,  but 
the  most  opposed  his  conservative  policy. 

The  leader  of  the  war  party,  as  has  already  appeared,  was 
Alcibiades.  He  made  himself  the  mouth-piece  of  his  party,  and 
replied  to  Nicias  in  a  violent  and  demagogic  speech.  He  began 
by  defending  himself  against  what  Nicias  had  said  in  regard  to  his 
personal  habits.  He  maintained  that  instead  of  being  found  fault 
with  because  of  his  so-called  extravagance,  he  deserved  to  be 
praised  ;  for  he  was  really  gaining  great  distinction  for  the  state,  as 
when  he  represented  the  Athenians  at  the  Olympian  games,  and 
sent  seven  chariots  into  the  lists  —  the  like  of  which  had  never 
been  done  before  by  any  private  person  —  and  won  two  prizes. 
By  his  magnificent  expenditures,  he  also  counteracted  the  impres- 
sion that  had  gone  abroad  that  the  Athenians  were  almost 
bankrupted  by  the  war.  The  energy,  moreover,  which  he  had 
displayed,  redounded  to  the  glory  of  Athens,  for  this  created  "  an 
impression  of  power."  His  munificence  in  the  bringing-out  of 
choruses,  and  in  the  discharge  of  other  duties  of  citizenship, 
reflected  honor  on  the  city:  "There  is  some  use,"  he  said,  "in 
the  folly  of  a  man  who  at  his  own  cost  benefits  not  only  himself, 
but  the  state."  He  expected  to  be  envied  and  hated  and  abused 
during  his  lifetime,  as  other  illustrious  men  had  been ;  but  like 
1  Thucyd.  vi.  9-14,  for  the  entire  speech. 


340  THE   SICTLIAN  EXPEDITTOh'. 

them  he  would  leave  behmd  a  reputation  which  would  make  many 
anxious  to  claim  relationship  to  him..  Athens  would  be  proud  of 
him,  —  after  he  was  gone,  —  as  she  was  proud  of  other  great  citi- 
zens who  had  preceded  him.  As  to  his  capacity  for  the  manage- 
ment of  public  business,  had  he  not  demonstrated  this  in  the  way 
in  which  he  handled  the  Argive  alliance  ?^  The  whole  thing 
led,  to  be  sure,  to  the  defeat  at  Mantinea ;  but  if  the  Lacedaemo- 
nians did  gain  a  great  victory,  they  were  badly  frightened,  and  had 
hardly  yet  recovered. 

All  this  he  had  already  achieved,  and  he  was  yet  young  —  he 
admitted  the  charge.  But  "do  not  be  afraid  of  me,"  he  added, 
"  because  I  am  young ;  but  while  I  am  in  the  flower  of  my  days, 
and  Nicias  enjoys  the  reputation  of  success,  use  the  services  of 
us  both." 

Alcibiades  then  urged  the  citizens  to  abide  by  their  first  resolu- 
tion. He  represented  the  Greeks  of  Sicily  as  a  "  motley  crew," 
unpatriotic,  inconstant,  disunited,  undisciplined,  with  few  heavy- 
armed  troops,  and  hence  wholly  incapable  of  making  any  stand 
against  an  Athenian  army.  Moreover,  the  barbarians  in  the  island, 
unfriendly  to  the  Syracusans,  would  join  the  Athenians. 

Referring  to  what  Nicias  had  said  in  regard  to  the  unsettled 
state  of  Athenian  affairs  at  home,  the  speaker  maintained  that 
Sparta,  even  if  disposed  to  attack  Athens  during  the  absence  of  the 
fleet,  could  do  nothing  more  than  make  a  bootless  invasion  by 
land ;  for  the  Athenians  would  leave  behind  for  the  defense  of  the 
empire  as  many  ships  as  Sparta  could  possibly  muster.  There  was 
no  danger  of  anything  untoward  happening  at  home  while  the 
expedition  was  away. 

Alcibiades  then  closed  by  telling  the  Athenians  that  if  they 
wished  to  rule,  instead  of  being  ruled,  they  must  maintain  that 
enterprising  and  aggressive  policy  that  had  won  for  them  their 
empire.  To  adopt  Nicias'  policy  of  inaction  and  indolent  repose 
was  simply  to  give  up  their  imperial  position.  Let  old  and  young 
unite,  he  said,  in  lifting  Athens  to  a  yet  greater  height  of  power 

1  See  p.  329. 


DEBATE   /N   THE  ATHENIAN  ASSEMBLY.  341 

and  glory.  With  Sicily  conquered,  the  Athenians  would  probably 
become  lords  of  the  whole  Hellenic  world. ^ 

Alcibiades  evidently  had  the  ear  of  the  meeting.  Nicias 
perceived  this,  and  realizing  that  to  address  arguments  to  the 
understanding  of  the  people  in  their  present  martial  mood  would 
be  useless,  changed  his  tactics,  and  in  a  second  speech  strove  to 
frighten  them  from  the  undertaking  by  dwelling  upon  the  size 
and  expense  of  the  armament  they  must  place  at  the  disposal  of 
their  generals. 

Expressing  himself  as  willing  to  acquiesce  in  the  will  of  the 
majority,  Nicias  proceeded  to  speak  of  the  populousness  and 
wealth  of  the  Sicilian  cities  which  the  Athenians  would  have 
arrayed  against  them.  In  opposition  to  what  Alcibiades  had  said 
in  regard  to  their  lack  of  good  infantry,  he  maintained  that  they 
had  large  forces  of  heavy-armed  as  well  as  light-armed  troops,  a 
formidable  cavalry,  and  numerous  war-ships.  Syracuse  had  a 
large  treasury  always  well  filled  by  the  contributions  of  various 
tribute-paying  subjects.  Moreover,  the  fertile  fields  of  the  island 
provided  an  abundance  of  grain  for  the  population,  so  that  the 
control  of  the  sea  by  the  Athenians  would  avail  them  nothing. 
Consequently  they  must  send  out  something  beside  a  fleet ;  they 
must  equip  a  large  land  force  of  both  heavy-armed  and  light- 
armed  men.  They  must  arrange  to  import  for  their  troops  regular 
supplies  of  food,  for  they  could  not  depend  upon  provisions  being 
furnished  by  the  islanders. 

They  must  also  take  plenty  of  money ;  "  for  as  to  the  supplies 
of  the  Egestaeans,"  said  Nicias,  "which  are  said  to  be  awaiting  us, 
we  had  better  assume  that  they  are  all  imaginary."  They  must 
leave  nothing  to  fortune ;  but  make  prudent  provision  for  any 
likely  contingency.  If  they  thought  that  he  was  exaggerating  the 
magnitude  of  the  task  they  were  undertaking,  and  was  asking  for 
an  unreasQnably  large  armament,  he  would  resign  his  command 
and  they  might  choose  another  general  in  his  place.- 

This  speech  produced  just  the  opposite  effect  upon  the  meeting 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  i6-i8.  ^-pj^ucyd^  yi.  20-23. 


342  THE   SICTUAN  EXPEDITION. 

from  that  which  Nicias  had  hoped.  The  vastness  of  the  enter- 
prise, the  magnificent  proportions  of  the  armament  needed,  as 
pictured  by  Nicias,  seemed  to  captivate  the  imagination  of  the 
susceptible  Athenians,  and  they  were  more  eager  than  ever  to 
embark  in  the  undertaking.  The  proposed  colossal  size  of  the 
armament  appeared  to  inspire  all  with  a  feeling  of  confidence  in 
the  success  of  the  expedition  ;  its  very  magnitude  was  an  insurance 
against  defeat  and  failure.  The  expedition  further  presented 
itself  to  the  ardent  imagination  of  the  youth  as  a  sort  of  pleasure 
and  sight-seeing  excursion  among  the  wonders  of  the  land  of  the 
"  Far  West."  Others  saw  in  the  undertaking  opportunities  for 
personal  advancement  and  enrichment.  Still  larger  numbers  of 
the  poorer  class  were  won  to  the  enterprise  by  the  prospect  of 
employment  and  pay.  Those  who  had  no  mind  of  their  own  in 
the  matter  or  were  opposed  to  the  undertaking  were  carried  away 
or  were  silenced  by  the  enthusiasm  of  the  others ;  and  so  it  came 
about  that,  almost  without  a  dissenting  voice,  the  assembly  voted 
for  the  expedition,  and  called  upon  Nicias  to  give  an  estimate  of 
the  ships  and  troops  required.  He  told  the  people  that  anything 
like  an  accurate  estimate  could  not  be  given  off-hand,  but  that 
they  should  have  not  less  than  one  hundred  triremes  of  their  own, 
and  at  least  five  thousand  hoplites  in  all,  and  a  proportional 
number  of  light-armed  troops.  They  must  also  have  a  force  of 
Cretan  horsemen. 

The  assembly  at  once  voted  that  the  commanders  of  the  expedi- 
tion be  vested  with  discretionary  authority  as  to  the  number  of  the 
forces  to  be  collected  as  well  as  in  regard  to  all  the  preparations, 
which  were  straightway  set  on  foot. 

The  Mutilation  of  the  Hermse.  —  The  preparations  were  well 
advanced  and  the  expedition  was  on  the  eve  of  its  departure,  when 
the  numerous  statues  of  Hermes,  scattered  throughout  the  city, 
were  one  night  grossly  mutilated.  This  sacrilegious  act  naturally 
produced  a  terrible  excitement.  The  motive  of  the  outrage  could 
only  be  guessed  at ;  and  of  course  all  kinds  of  disquieting  surmises 
and  rumors  were  set  afloat.     It  was  thought  by  some  to  be  the 


DEPARTURE    OF  EXPEDITION  FROM  PEIR^EUS.       343 

work  of  persons  opposed  to  the  expedition,  who,  by  thus  awaken- 
ing the  superstitious  fears  of  the  people,  sought  to  prevent  the 
saihng  of  the  fleet. 

Alcibiades  did  not  escape  suspicion.  No  direct  evidence  indeed 
connected  him  with  the  present  outrage,  but  certain  persons,  under 
the  stimulus  of  the  offer  of  large  rewards  for  information,  testified 
that  he,  with  some  of  his  boon  companions,  had  been  guilty  of  the 
impiety  of  mimicking  in  secret  the  sacred  rites  of  the  Eleusinian 
mysteries  (p.  44).  The  enemies  of  Alcibiades  spread  abroad 
exaggerated  reports  about  this  matter,  and  in  addition  boldly 
charged  him  with  the  mutilation  of  the  statues.  The  thing  was  so 
in  keeping  with  the  mad  escapades  in  which  it  was  common  for 
Alcibiades  to  indulge,  that  many  were  ready  to  believe  that  he  had 
had  a  hand  in  the  affair.  His  object,  so  his  enemies  maintained, 
was  to  create  a  revolution  in  the  interest  of  the  oligarchy. 

It  is  not  probable  that  Alcibiades  was  guilty  of  the  crime  laid 
at  his  door.  He  protested  his  innocence,  and  demanded  that  he 
be  given  a  trial  at  once.  But  his  enemies  knew  very  well  that  if 
he  were  tried  while  the  army  was  still  at  home,  he  would  certainly 
be  acquitted  ;  for  he  was  very  popular  with  the  soldiers.  Accord- 
ingly they  insisted  upon  the  postponement  of  the  trial,  urging 
that  the  expedition  which  was  now  ready  to  sail  ought  not  to  be 
delayed.  It  was  their  plan  to  secure  his  recall  and  trial  under 
circumstances  more  favorable  to  obtaining  a  verdict  against  him. 

The  Departure  of  the  Expedition  from  the  Peirseus.  —  It  was 
midsummer  (415  B.C.)  when  all  the  preparations  for  the  sailing  of 
the  expedition  were  completed.  The  war-ships  of  the  greater  part 
of  the  allies,  together  with  the  transports  and  other  vessels,  were 
t-o  collect  at  Corcyra,  where  the  Athenians  were  to  join  them  with 
their  own  fleet,  and  then  the  united  armament  was  to  strike  across 
the  sea  to  the  nearest  Italian  shore,  and  so  on  to  Sicily. 

The  day  of  the  departure  of  the  Athenian  fleet  from  the  Peiraeus 
was  one  of  the  great  days  in  ancient  Athens.  It  was  yet  early 
morning  when  the  soldiers  and  sailors  poured  down  from  the 
upper  city  into  the  harbor  town  and  began  to  man  the   ships. 


344  THE   STCILTAN  EXPEDITION: 

"The  entire  population  of  Athens,"  says  Thucydides,  who  must 
have  been  an  eye-witness  of  the  stirring  scene  which  he  describes, 
"  accompanied  them,  citizens  and  strangers  ahke.  The  citizens 
came  to  take  farewell,  one  of  an  acquaintance,  another  of  a  kins- 
man, another  of  a  son  ;  the  crowd  as  they  passed  along  were  full 
of  hope  and  full  of  tears  ;  hope  of  conquering  Sicily,  tears  because 
they  doubted  whether  they  would  ever  see  their  friends  again, 
when  they  thought  of  the  long  voyage  on  which  they  were  sending 
them.  At  the  moment  of  parting  the  danger  was  nearer;  and 
terrors  which  had  never  occurred  to  them  when  they  were  voting 
the  expedition  now  entered  into  their  souls.  Nevertheless  their 
spirits  revived  at  the  sight  of  the  armament  in  all  its  strength 
and  of  the  abundant  provision  which  they  had  made.  The 
strangers  and  the  rest  of  the  multitude  came  out  of  curiosity, 
desiring  to  witness  an  enterprise  of  which  the  greatness  exceeded 
beHef."  ^ 

Athens  had  sent  out  larger  fleets  than  the  one  which  she  was 
now  dispatching  to  Sicily,  but  never  one  so  costly  and  so  splen- 
didly equipped.  Not  only  had  the  public  treasures  of  the  state 
been  lavished  on  the  armament,  but  private  citizens  had  vied  with 
each  other  in  the  decoration  of  their  ships,  and  in  the  complete- 
ness and  magnificence  of  their  personal  outfit. 

Not  without  invocation  to  the  gods  for  the  success  of  the  expe- 
dition did  the  fleet  set  out  from  the  Peirgeus.  "  When  the  ships 
were  manned,  and  everything  required  for  the  voyage  had  been 
placed  on  board,  silence  was  proclaimed  by  the  sound  of  the 
trumpet,  and  all  with  one  voice,  before  setting  sail,  offered  up  the 
customary  prayers ;  these  were  recited,  not  in  each  ship,  but  by  a 
single  herald,  the  whole  fleet  accompanying  him.  On  every  deck, 
both  officers  and  men,  mingling  wine  in  bowls,  made  libations  from 
vessels  of  gold  and  silver.  The  multitudes  of  citizens  and  other 
well-wishers  who  were  looking  on  from  the  land  joined  in  the 
prayer.  The  crews  raised  the  Paean,  and  when  the  libations  were 
completed,  put  to  sea."^ 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  30.  2  Thucyd.  vi.  32. 


SYRACUSANS  DISCUSS    THE   EXPEDITION.  345 

Anxiously  did  those  remaining  behind  watch  the  departing  ships 
until  they  were  lost  to  sight.  Could  the  anxious  watchers  have 
foreseen  the  fate  of  the  splendid  armament,  their  anxiety  would 
have  passed  into  despair :  "  Athens  itself  was  sailing  out  of  the 
Peiraeus,  never  to  return." 

The  Syracusans  discuss  the  Prospect  of  the  Expedition  ever 
coming.  —  The  great  expedition  against  Sicily  was  now  launched. 
Rumor  had  preceded  it.  But  the  Syracusans  were  incredulous, 
and  could  not  convince  themselves  that  the  reports  which  reached 
them  as  to  what  the  Athenians  were  doing  and  intending  were 
really  true.  However,  as  rumor  continued  to  follow  rumor  a  meet- 
ing of  the  popular  assembly  was  at  last  called,  in  order  that  the 
matter  might  be  given  attention.^ 

One  of  the  speakers  was  a  citizen  of  Syracuse  named  Hermoc- 
rates.  He  had,  or  thought  that  he  had,  the  latest  and  most 
reHable  information.  He  anticipated  the  incredulity  of  his  hear- 
ers, saying  that  he  did  not  expect  to  be  beheved  when  he  told 
them  that  the  expedition  was  "  really  coming."  Nevertheless  it 
was  a  fact,  and  not  a  groundless  rumor  started  for  a  political  pur- 
pose. The  Athenians  were  really  on  the  water,  on  their  way  there. 
And  they  were  not  coming  simply  to  give  disinterested  help  to  the 
Egestaeans  ;  that  was  what  they  were  giving  out,  to  be  sure ;  but 
the  objective  point  of  the  expedition  was  Syracuse,  with  an  eye  to 
the  whole  of  Sicily. 

The  speaker  then  urged  the  Syracusans  to  at  once  take  meas- 
ures of  defense.  He  advised  them  to  renew  all  their  old  alhances 
in  the  island  and  to  form  all  the  new  ones  they  could.  The  Italian 
cities  could,  he  believed,  be  induced  to  join  Syracuse,  or  at  least  be 
persuaded  to  remain  neutral.  And  the  Carthaginians,  also,  might 
be  persuaded  to  come  into  an  alliance  against  Athens ;  for  they  were 

1  The  government  of  Syracuse  at  this  time  was  a  democracy.  At  the  time  of 
the  Persian  War,  as  we  have  seen,  the  city  was  in  the  hands  of  the  tyrant  Gelo 
(p.  178).  This  despot  was  followed  by  his  brother,  Hiero  I.  (478-467),  upon 
whose  death  there  followed  a  period  of  turbulence,  which  issued  in  the  establish- 
ment of  popular  rule.  The  most  of  the  other  cities  of  Sicily  and  Magna  Graecia  at 
about  this  same  time  drove  out  their  tyrants,  and  set  up  democratic  institutions, 


346  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

threatened  equally  with  the  Syracusans  by  the  ambition  of  the 
Athenians,  who  were  revolving  in  mind  nothing  less  than  to  make 
themselves  masters  of  the  western  part  of  the  Mediterranean  as  they 
were  already  lords  of  the  eastern  portion.  An  alliance  with  the 
Carthaginians  would  be  worth  most  to  the  Syracusans  :  "  for  they," 
said  the  speaker,  "  have  an  abundance  of  gold  and  silver,  and  these 
make  war,  like  other  things,  go  smoothly."  Envoys  should  also 
be  sent  to  Sparta  and  Corinth  to  entreat  them  to  send  a  fleet  to 
Sicily,  and  at  the  same  time  to  make  a  diversion  in  Greece  by 
renewing  there  the  war  against  Athens  and  her  allies. 

But  Hermocrates  did  not  think  the  Syracusans  should  content 
themselves  with  these  preparations  against  the  threatened  attack ; 
he  advised  the  sending  of  a  strong  fleet  to  intercept  the  Athenian 
armament  at  Tarentum,  on  the  coast  of  Italy,  and  to  offer  them 
battle  there.  The  moral  effect  of  such  a  display  of  fearlessness 
and  energy  on  the  part  of  the  Syracusans  would  be  worth  every- 
thing to  them,  even  though  the  fleet  should  accomplish  nothing 
more  than  to  annoy  and  delay  the  enemy.  The  speaker  beheved, 
however,  that  merely  intelligence  to  the  effect  that  the  Syracusans 
were  guarding  with  a  fleet  the  Italian  coast  would  be  sufficient  to 
prevent  the  Athenians  from  setting  out  from  Corcyra.  The  watch- 
fleet  need  not  be  large  —  rumor  would  increase  its  size.^ 

This  speech  of  Hermocrates  created  a  great  stir  in  the  meeting. 
Some  were  amused,  regarding  the  whole  thing  as  a  jest ;  others 
refused  to  regard  it  as  an  alarming  matter  even  if  the  Athenians 
were  coming  ;  and  still  others  were  certain  that  the  rumors  were 
being  circulated  by  conspirators  who  were  planning  revolution. 
Among  the  last  was  a  favorite  leader  of  the  democrats,  named 
Athenagoras.     He  replied  to  Hermocrates. 

"  He  is  either  a  coward  or  a  traitor,"  thus  began  Athenagoras, 
"  who  would  not  rejoice  to  hear  that  the  Athenians  are  so  mad 
as  to  come  hither  and  deliver  themselves  into  our  hands.  The 
audacity  of  the  people  who  are  spreading  these  alarms  does  not 
surprise   me,  but  I  do  wonder   at  their  folly  if  they  cannot  see 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  33,  34. 


SYRACUSANS  DISCUSS    THE   EXPEDITION.  347 

that  their  motives  are  transparent.  .  .  .  And  now,  what  is  the 
meaning  of  these  rumors  ?  They  do  not  grow  of  themselves ; 
they  have  been  got  up  by  persons  who  are  the  troublers  of  our 
state."  The  speaker  then  went  on  to  show  how  improbable  it 
was  that  the  Athenians,  men  of  good  sense  and  large  experience, 
would  embark  on  such  a  mad  adventure  as  these  rumors  repre- 
sented them  as  having  actually  undertaken.  To  leave  behind  them 
such  a  crowd  of  enemies  as  they  had  in  Greece,  and  go  out  in  their 
boats  to  a  remote  island  to  stir  up  more  enemies,  would  be  a 
piece  of  fooHshness  of  which  they  were  incapable. 

But  even  if  the  reports  should  turn  out  to  be  true,  and  the 
Athenians  were  really  coming,  still,  the  speaker  insisted,  there 
was  no  occasion  for  alarm.  The  Sicilians  could  make  a  better 
stand  against  Athens  than  the  Peloponnesians ;  Syracuse  alone 
was  more  than  a  match  for  the  entire  army  that  was  said  to  be 
coming.  The  Athenians  could  not  bring  cavalry  with  them,  and 
could  get  few  or  no  horses  in  the  island ;  but  without  cavalry  they 
would  be  at  the  mercy  of  the  Syracusans  on  the  land. 

The  reports,  however,  Athenagoras  went  on  to  say,  were  false. 
They  had  been  circulated  by  scheming,  ambitious  leaders  of  the 
oligarchical  party,  whose  object  it  was  to  frighten  the  people  into 
giving  into  their  hands  the  management  of  the  defense  of  the 
state.  It  was  all  a  plot  to  overthrow  the  democratic  constitution 
of  the  city,  and  to  set  up  an  oligarchical  government. 

The  speaker  then  proceeded  to  denounce  the  oligarchs  and 
oligarchy,  where  a  few  monopolize  all  the  public  offices  and  enjoy 
all  the  privileges  of  the  community,  and  to  praise  democracy, 
where  all  have  an  equal  interest  and  share  in  all  the  good  things 
of  the  state.  He  concluded  with  a  warning  to  the  conspirators, 
and  with  a  confession  of  faith  in  the  ability  of  the  people  to 
circumvent  all  the  schemes  of  the  oHgarchs  to  get  power  in  their 
hands,  and  to  preserve  intact  all  the  free  institutions  of  the  city.  ^ 

The  debate  was  at  this  point  cut  short  by  the  generals,  who, 
seeing  that  it  was  degenerating  into  a  personal  controversy,  dis- 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  36-40. 


348  THE   STCILTAN  EXPEDITTON. 

missed  the  assembly,  after  having,  through  one  of  their  number, 
given  the  people  assurance  that  whatever  measures  of  defense 
prudence  might  dictate  would  be  taken  by  them,  whose  business  it 
was  to  look  after  the  security  of  the  state. 

This  discussion,  while  valuable  to  us  as  an  exhibition  of  the 
mutual  relations  of  political  parties  at  Syracuse,  serves  further  to 
introduce  to  us  the  greatest  stateman,  Hermocrates,  to  be  found 
at  this  time  among  the  Sicilian  Greeks.  As  the  representative  of 
the  oligarchical  party,  he  was  naturally  distrusted  by  the  leaders 
of  the  democratical  party ;  but  he  was  a  man  of  statesmanlike 
views  and  of  correct  judgment,  and  was  withal  a  sincere  patriot, 
whose  outlook  was  not  bounded  by  the  interests  of  Syracuse,  but 
included  the  whole  of  Sicily. 

The  Athenians  sail  from  Corcyra  to  Italy.  —  We  must  now 
return  to  watch  the  progress  of  the  Athenian  armament.  All  the 
ships  had  now  mustered  at  Corcyra.  The  allied  fleet  consisted  of 
a  hundred  and  thirty- four  triremes  and  two  pentecosters,  bearing 
thirty-six  thousand  soldiers  and  sailors,  of  whom  over  five  thou- 
sand were  hoplites.  The  fi§et  carried  only  thirty  horsemen.  A 
multitude  of  merchant  vessels  and  craft  of  every  kind,  some  in 
the  public  service  as  transports,  others  on  private  enterprise  and 
adventure,  accompanied  the  expedition. 

The  fleet  was  formed  into  three  detachments,  each  under  com- 
mand of  one  of  the  three  generals.  This  was  in  order  that  the 
divisions,  sailing  one  after  another  at  intervals  of  a  few  days, 
might  experience  no  difliculty  in  finding  provisions  and  anchoring- 
places  as  they  cruised  along  the  Italian  shore.  From  Corcyra, 
the  fleet  struck  across  to  the  nearest  ItaHan  land,  the  promontory 
of  lapygia,  and  hugged  the  shore  as  it  worked  on  towards  Sicily. 

The  Greek  cities  along  the  coast  held  themselves  absolutely 
neutral.  They  allowed  the  expedition  anchorage  and  water,  but 
would  neither  permit  the  soldiers  to  enter  their  gates,  nor  sell  them 
supplies  of  any  kind.  At  Tarentum  and  Locri,  even  the  privilege 
to  anchor  and  take  water  was  denied. 

At  last  the  several  detachments  of  the  fleet  came  together  in 


A    DTSCOURAGrNG   BEGINNING.  349 

the  harbor  of  Rhegium,  situated  on  the  strait  running  between 
Italy  and  Sicily.  Here  a  market  was  opened  to  them ;  and 
dragging  their  ships  from  the  water,  they  encamped  and  rested.^ 

A  Discouraging  Beginning :  the  Athenian  Generals  hold  a 
Council  of  War.  —  While  the  fleet  was  lying  at  Rhegium,  the 
Athenian  envoys  who  had  been  sent  in  advance  to  Egesta  to  inves- 
tigate the  situation  there  returned,  bringing  the  report  that  the 
boasted  wealth  of  the  Egestaeans  was,  as  Nicias  had  surmised 
(p.  341),  wholly  imaginary,  and  that  thirty  talents  was  all  the 
money  the  Athenians  would  receive  from  that  source. 

This  was  a  discouraging  beginning  for  the  Athenians,  —  here 
within  sight  of  Sicily  to  learn  that  the  very  men  whom  they  were 
on  the  way  to  help  had  grossly  deceived  them  in  regard  to  their 
resources  and  promised  help.  Added  to  this  disappointment  was 
the  refusal  of  the  Rhegians  to  join  them.  As  these  people  had 
always  been  friendly  to  the  Athenians,  their  resolution  to  remain 
neutral  was  both  unexpected  and  disheartening. 

There  was  a  division  of  opinion  among  the  Athenian  generals  as 
to  the  best  course  for  them  under  the  changed  circumstances  to 
pursue.  Nicias,  timid  and  conservative  in  counsel  as  was  his  wont, 
advised  undertaking  as  little  as  honor  would  permit.  He  thought 
they  should  carry  out  the  original  resolution  in  regard  to  an  attack 
upon  Selinus,  forcing  the  Egestaeans  to  pay  what  they  had  prom- 
ised to  contribute  towards  the  maintenance  of  the  fleet,  and  then, 
unless  some  good  opportunity  presented  itself  for  their  doing 
something  to  advance  Athenian  interest  in  the  island,  to  return 
home.  Lamachus  was  in  favor  of  an  immediate  attack  upon 
Syracuse,  before  the  inhabitants  had  time  to  put  their  city  in  a 
state  of  defense. 

The  proposals  of  Alcibiades  were  neither  so  timid  as  those  of 
Nicias  nor  so  bold  as  those  of  Lamachus.  He  advised  that  they 
first  make  friends  of  the  people  of  Messene,^  which  would  give  the 
Athenians  a  good  harbor,  and  put  them  in  possession  of  a  strategic 
position  which  virtually  commanded  all  Sicily.     Alliances  should 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  42-44.  2  Attic  form  of  Messana. 


350  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

next  be  formed  with  as  many  of  the  Hellenic  states  and  the  native 
tribes  of  the  island  as  possible,  the  subjects  of  the  Syracusans 
instigated  to  revolt,  and  then  attacks  be  made  both  upon  Sehnus 
and  Syracuse,  unless  both  cities  conceded  to  the  demands  of  the 
Athenians. 

The  plan  of  Alcibiades  was  adopted.  He  himself  went  to 
Messene  to  soHcit  an  alliance ;  but  the  Messenians  rejected  his 
proposals.  The  Athenians  now  sailed  with  a  portion  of  their  fleet 
to  Naxos,  which  opened  its  gates  to  them.  They  also  got  posses- 
sion of  the  neighboring  important  city  of  Catana,  where  they  col- 
lected their  whole  armament.^ 

The  Recall  of  Alcibiades.  —  Just  as  the  Athenians  had  secured 
a  good  foothold  on  the  island,  and  were  in  a  position  to  push 
forward  operations  against  Syracuse,  the  sacred  ship  Salaminia 
arrived  at  Catana  from  Athens  with  a  summons  to  Alcibiades  to 
return  home  to  stand  trial  for  alleged  impiety  in  the  matter  of  the 
recent  sacrilegious  outrages  at  Athens  (p.  342). 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  mutilation  of  the  Hermae  at 
Athens,  in  which  act  Alcibiades  was  accused  of  having  had  a 
hand.  After  the  departure  of  the  fleet,  the  excitement  over  the 
affair  grew  constantly  more  intense.  Many  arrests  were  made, 
and  on  the  strength  of  the  statements  of  one  of  the  prisoners,  who 
turned  informer,  a  number  of  persons  were  executed.  They  were 
doubtless  the  victims  of  pubUc  panic  and  perjured  testimony. 

But  the  end  had  not  yet  been  reached.  The  enemies  of  Alci- 
biades were  determined  to  accomplish  his  ruin,  although  the 
testimony  in  regard  to  the  mutilation  of  the  Hermse  had  in  no  way 
implicated  him  in  that  outrage.  They  drew  attention  anew  to  the 
profanation  of  the  mysteries,  in  which  Alcibiades  was,  with  more 
reason,  accused  of  having  participated,  and  insisted  that  this  was 
a  part  of  the  same  plot  against  the  democracy. 

Various  circumstances  gave  a  color  of  truth  to  this  interpreta- 
tion of  the  affair.  A  body  of  Lacedaemonians  had  appeared  off" 
the  Isthmus,  ostensibly  on  their  way  to  Boeotia,  but  really,  it  was 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  46-52. 


THE  RECALL    OF  ALCLBLADES.  351 

maintained,  to  give  support  to  the  conspirators  in  Athens.  The 
appearance  of  this  force  had  produced  great  excitement,  and 
throughout  one  night  all  the  men  of  Athens  were  under  arms, 
watching  against  they  hardly  knew  what  danger.  Intelligence,  too, 
had  come  from  Argos  to  the  effect  that  the  friends  of  Alcibiades 
in  that  city  were  plotting  to  overthrow  the  recently  re-established 
democracy  there  (p.  333,  n.).  This  was  regarded  as  a  part  of  the 
conspiracy  against  the  democracy  at  Athens.  Furthermore,  in 
the  new  light  which  these  matters  threw  upon  the  situation,  the 
whole  Sicilian  expedition  appeared  as  a  part  of  the  deep-laid  plot. 
Alcibiades  had  planned  this  in  order  to  get  the  Athenian  army  out 
of  the  way  while  the  conspiracy  was  being  consummated  at  home. 

Thus  the  people,  living  in  an  atmosphere  of  suspicion,  saw  every- 
thing in  a  distorting  light.  With  the  public  mind  in  this  state,  and 
with  the  greater  part  of  the  friends  of  Alcibiades  away  with  him  on 
the  fleet,  it  had  been  easy  for  his  enemies  to  secure  the  decree 
ordering  his  return.  The  blow  fell  not  only  upon  Alcibiades  but 
upon  the  whole  expedition  ;  for  no  one  save  Alcibiades  could  carry 
out  successfully  the  plan  of  campaign  that  had  been  determined 
upon,  and  which  was  the  only  one  that  could  now  be  followed,  since 
the  favorable  moment  for  the  execution  of  the  plan  of  Lamachus 
(p.  349)  had  passed.  And  the  ruin  of  the  expedition  meant  the  ruin 
of  Athens.  Thus  far-reaching  were  the  consequences  of  the  muti- 
lation of  the  Hermse  destined  to  be. 

The  persons  who  were  sent  in  the  Salaminia  to  summon  Alci- 
biades to  Athens,  were  instructed  not  to  arrest  him,  as  this  might 
cause  a  dangerous  excitement  among  the  friends  of  the  accused 
in  the  army,  but  to  allow  him  to  return  in  his  own  vessel,  in 
company  with  the  state-ship.  This  arrangement  afforded  Alcibi- 
ades an  opportunity  to  escape,  which  he  did  not  fail  to  improve ; 
for  he  well  knew  that  a  trial  at  Athens,  in  the  present  state  of 
pubHc  feeling  there,  meant  his  certain  condemnation.  Conse- 
quently at  Thurii,  in  Italy,  to  which  place  he  had  accompanied 
the  Salaminia,  he  slipped  away  from  his  escort,  and  escaped  in 
a  merchant-ship  to  the  Peloponnesus.     There  we  shall  meet  him 


352  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

presently,  doing  all  in  his  power,  through  traitorous  counsel  to  the 
Spartans,  to  ruin  the  very  expedition  that  he  himself  had  planned. 

When  the  Salaminia  appeared  at  the  Peirseus  without  Alcibiades, 
the  Athenians  straightway  passed  upon  him  the  sentence  of  death,^ 

Operations  of  the  Athenians  in  Sicily  before  the  First  Winter. 
—  The  Athenian  army  in  Sicily  effected  but  little  of  importance 
before  the  setting-in  of  winter.  The  generals  made  an  expedition 
to  the  western  side  of  the  island,  in  order  to  investigate  the  state 
of  affairs  there.  They  made  some  attacks  on  native  coast-towns 
which  were  hostile  to  the  Athenians  and  their  Egestaean  allies,  and 
took  some  prisoners,  on  the  sale  of  whom  upon  their  return  they 
realized  a  hundred  and  twenty  talents  (about  $144,000). 

Before  the  winter  was  fully  set  in,  the  Athenians  also  made  an 
attempt  against  Syracuse.  They  had  recourse  here  to  a  stratagem. 
By  means  of  a  false  communication  to  the  Syracusans,  they  led 
them  to  believe  that  a  sudden  early  morning  attack  upon  the 
Athenian  camp  at  Catana,  which  was  represented  as  wholly  un- 
prepared for  such  a  movement,  would  result  in  the  capture  of 
the  entire  army.  The  Syracusans  resolved  to  act  upon  the  sug- 
gestion. Accordingly  one  night  they  marched  out  with  their 
entire  force  towards  Catana. 

At  the  same  time  the  Athenians,  perfectly  informed  as  to  the 
movements  of  the  enemy,  sailed  out  of  the  harbor  of  Catana  with 
all  their  ships  and  men,  and  bore  down  upon  Syracuse.  Easily 
effecting  a  landing,  they  estabUshed  themselves  in  a  sort  of  forti- 
fied camp  close  to  the  city  walls.  The  dawn  revealing  to  the 
Syracusans,  now  at  Catana,  the  deserted  camp  of  the  Athenians, 
they  hastened  back  to  the  defense  of  their  own  city.  A  sharp 
battle  ensued,  in  which  the  Athenians  were  victorious ;  but  they 
were  not  able  to  press  their  advantage  on  account  of  the  enemy's 
cavalry,  and  their  own  lack  in  this  respect.  Consequently,  after 
they  had  buried  their  dead,  fifty  in  number,  they  sailed  back  to 
the  eastern  side  of  the  island,  and  finally  went  into  winter  quarters 
first  at  Naxos  and  afterwards  at  Catana.^ 

1  Thucyd.  vi,  53,  60,  61,  '^  Thucyd.  vi.  62-71,  78. 


ATHENIANS  AND  SYRACUSANS  IN   WINTER. 


353 


How  the  Athenians  and  Syracusans  passed  the  Winter. — The 

Athenian  generals  utilized  the  winter  months  in  making  prepara- 
tions for  the  renewal  of  the  war  in  the  spring.  Their  experiences 
thus  far  on  the  island  had  convinced  them  that  in  order  to  be  able 
to  cope  with  the  Syracusans  on  equal  terms,  they  must  have  a 


(From  Grote's  Greece.) 

cavalry  force.     Hence  they  sent  to  Athens  for  horsemen,  and  for 
increased  grants  of  money  for  the  army. 

At  the  same  time  embassies  were  sent  to  various  Sicilian  cities 
for  the  purpose  of  drawing  them  into  an  alliance  with  Athens. 
The  natives  of  the  interior,  the  Sicels,  were  won  over.  Embassies 
were  also  sent  to  Carthage  and  the  Tyrrhenian  cities. 


354  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

The  Syracusans  were  also  busy  throughout  the  winter  preparing 
for  the  expected  renewal  of  the  war  with  the  opening  of  spring. 
Their  defeat  beneath  their  own  walls  had  taught  them  some 
lessons,  which  they  now  turned  to  profit.  Hermocrates  told  them 
plainly  that  they  had  too  many  generals/  and  that  nothing  could 
be  effected  until  they  were  willing  to  entrust  the  control  of  the 
army  to  a  few  commanders  of  ability  and  experience.  The  people 
recognized  the  truth  there  was  in  what  Hermocrates  said,  and, 
in  accordance  with  his  suggestion,  reduced  the  number  of  their 
generals  to  three,  of  which  number  he  was  chosen  one.  At  the 
same  time,  acting  in  this  matter  also  upon  his  advice,  they  sent 
envoys  to  Corinth  and  Sparta,  to  urge  them  not  only  to  renew 
the  war  in  Greece  against  Athens  but  also  to  send  an  armament  to 
Sicily.'-^ 

The  Syracusans  also  extended  and  strengthened  the  walls  of 
their  city.  They  further  constructed  forts,  palisades,  and  various 
harbor  defenses,  and  thus  in  every  way  possible  secured  the  city 
against  attack  landward  and  seaward. 

The  Debate  at  Camarina.  —  Nor  did  the  Syracusans  neglect 
their  allies.  Hearing  that  the  Athenians  were  laboring  with  the 
inhabitants  of  Camarina  to  induce  them  to  desert  the  Syracusan 
for  an  Athenian  alliance,  they  sent  to  that  city  an  embassy,  of  which 
Hermocrates  was  the  head,  to  counteract  the  influence  of  the 
Athenian  emissaries.  The  Syracusans  found  in  Camarina  an  Athe- 
nian embassy,  headed  by  Euphemus.  The  Camarinaeans  having 
called  an  assembly  to  consider  the  matter,  an  opportunity  was 
given  both  to  Hermocrates  and  to  Euphemus  to  address  the 
people. 

Hermocrates  spoke  first.  He  said  that  the  Athenians  pretended 
that  they  had  come  to  restore  the  Leontines  to  their  city.^     But 

1  They  had  fifteen,  as  it  seemed  to  the  Syracusans  more  democratic  to  manage 
their  military  matters  through  a  numerous  commission  than  to  lodge  so  much 
power  in  the  hands  of  one  general  or  of  a  few  who  might  use  it  to  overthrow 
the  constitution. 

2  Thucyd.  vi.  72,  73. 

3  See  p.  337,  n. 


THE   DEBATE  AT   CAMARINA.  355 

the  Athenians  were  not  to  be  trusted  when  they  offered  their  ser- 
vices as  Hberators.  At  the  time  of  the  Persian  War  they  held 
themselves  out  as  the  Hberators  of  Greece  from  the  barbarians. 
The  cities  trusted  her,  placed  themselves  under  her  leadership, 
and  what  was  the  outcome  ?  They  soon  discovered  that  they  had 
escaped  from  one  master  simply  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  another, 
"  who  might  be  cleverer,  but  certainly  made  a  more  dishonest  use 
of  his  wits."  And  now  these  Athenians,  who  had  enslaved  the 
cities  of  the  mother  land,  had  come  to  Sicily  to  reduce  the  cities 
there  likewise  to  slavery  —  their  expedition  thither  had  no  other 
aim  or  purpose,  notwithstanding  all  their  pretensions.  The  Greeks 
of  Sicily,  if  they  would  not  share  the  fate  of  their  kinsmen  else- 
where, must  be  united  among  themselves ;  for  it  was  through 
lack  of  union  that  the  cities  of  Eastern  Hellas  had  fallen  under 
the  power  of  Athens.  The  speaker  appealed  especially  to  the 
Camarinaeans  as  Dorians  not  to  betray  their  kinsmen  into  the  hands 
of  Ionian  enemies.^ 

The  Athenian  envoy,  Euphemus,  then  addressed  the  assembly. 
He  admitted  that  the  Athenians  were  human  —  that  in  the  Persian 
War  they  fought  for  themselves  as  well  as  for  the  other  Greeks  ;  and 
that  they  had  enslaved  their  kinsmen,  the  lonians,  in  and  about  the 
yEgean  Sea,  but  maintained  that  they  had  a  right  to  do  so  inasmuch 
as  Athens  was  their  mother  city,  and  further  because  by  their  will- 
ing submission  to  the  barbarians  they  had  endangered  the  liberty 
of  all  Hellas.  The  Athenians,  in  a  word,  had  built  up  their  empire 
as  a  means  of  defense  :  first,  against  the  Persians ;  and  second, 
against  the  Peloponnesians.  They  certainly  could  not  be  blamed 
for  taking  every  precaution  to  preserve  their  own  liberty  and  inde- 
pendence. 

Refraining  from  laying  claim  to  any  uncommon  virtue  for  the 
Athenians,  Euphemus  then  said  that  they  were  come  to  Sicily,  not 
as  disinterested  helpers  of  their  allies,  but  for  the  purpose  of  making 
their  empire  more  secure  —  not  to  enlarge  it,  but  to  make  it  safe 
against  attack  from  that  quarter.    "  Let  no  one  imagine,"  he  said, 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  76-80. 


356  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

"  that  your  welfare  is  no  business  of  ours  ;  for  if  you  are  preserved, 
and  are  strong  enough  to  hold  out  against  the  Syracusans,  they  will 
be  less  likely  to  aid  the  Peloponnesians,  and  so  to  injure  us. 
Thus  you  become  at  once  our  first  concern."  ^ 

In  reply  to  what  Hermocrates  had  said  about  the  improbability 
of  the  Athenians,  the  enslavers  of  the  rest  of  Hellas,  coming  as 
liberators  to  Sicily,  Euphemus  pointed  out  how  the  Athenians 
would  be  perfectly  consistent  in  freeing  the  Sicilian  cities  while 
making  subjects  of  those  at  home.  The  Athenians  in  this  would 
be  acting  consistently,  because  in  each  case  following  their  own  in- 
terests. In  the  ^gean,  as  he  had  explained,  the  interests  of  the 
Athenians  required  them  to  have  subject  cities,  but  in  Sicily  strong 
and  independent  aUies,  who  could  hold  their  own  against  Syracuse, 
and  keep  her  employed  at  home.  Therefore  the  Camarinaeans  need 
not  distrust  the  intentions  of  the  Athenians  in  Sicily.  The  speaker 
closed  with  warning  them  that  if  they  joined  with  the  Syracusans 
against  the  Athenians  and  compelled  them  to  withdraw  from  the 
island,  the  time  would  certainly  come  when  they  would  repent 
of  their  course ;  for  as  soon  as  the  fear  of  the  Athenians  was  re- 
moved from  before  the  eyes  of  the  Syracusans,  that  moment  they 
would  enslave  every  city  in  Sicily.^ 

The  Camarinaeans,  by  all  these  arguments  of  the  two  speakers, 
were  cast  into  a  state  of  great  perplexity.  They  were  not  per- 
fectly convinced  that  the  Athenians  did  not  really  intend  to  make 
Sicily  a  part  of  their  empire ;  and  on  the  other  hand  they  knew 
that  there  was  much  truth  in  what  Euphemus  had  said  in  regard 
to  what  the  Syracusans  would  do  if  the  Athenians  were  once  driven 
from  the  island.  Therefore  they  were  at  a  loss  to  decide  which 
party  they  would  better  help.  They  escaped  from  the  dilemma 
by  replying  to  the  embassies  that  they  would  remain  neutral. 
They  gave  this  answer,  however,  with  a  sort  of  mental  reservation 
that  they  would  lend  Syracuse  a  little  aid  —  not  enough  really  to 
amount  to  anything,  but  just  enough  to  make  her  favorably  dis- 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  84. 

2  Thucyd.  vi.  81-87,  for  the  entire  speech. 


ALCIBIADES  AT  SPARTA.  357 

posed  towards  them  should  she  chance   to    be    the  final   victor, 
which  they  deemed  likely.^ 

Alcibiades  at  Sparta.  —  At  Corinth  the  Syracusan  envoys  met 
with  a  warm  reception,  and  were  promised  assistance.  Moreover, 
when  the  ambassadors,  having  fulfilled  their  mission  at  Corinth,  set 
out  for  Sparta,  they  were  accompanied  by  Corinthian  commission- 
ers, who  were  instructed  to  unite  with  the  Syracusans  in  urging  the 
Lacedaemonians  to  at  once  renew  the  war  against  Athens  in  Greece, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  send  an  armament  to  Sicily  along  with  the 
forces  which  the  Corinthians  proposed  to  send  out  in  the  spring. 

At  Sparta,  the  embassies  found  Alcibiades  and  other  Athenian 
exiles.  Alcibiades  made  himself  at  once  the  friend  of  the  envoys, 
and  did  everything  he  could  to  render  their  mission  to  Sparta  a 
success.  In  a  speech  before  the  Spartan  assembly,  he  revealed 
all  the  designs  and  plans  of  the  Athenians.  He  said  that  their 
purpose  was  to  conquer  one  after  the  other  Sicily,  Italy,  and 
Carthage,  and  then  to  turn  the  united  forces  of  all  these  lands, 
increased  by  barbarian  mercenaries  from  Iberia  and  other  coun- 
tries, against  the  Peloponnesus.  The  additional  ships  they  would 
require  for  the  investment  of  the  Peloponnesus  they  intended  to 
build  in  Italy,  where  timber  for  ship-building  was  abundant;  while 
the  money  they  would  need,  they  expected  to  get  through  tribute 
levied  upon  the  Sicilian  and  Italian  cities. 

The  surest  way,  Alcibiades  then  told  the  Spartans,  in  which  to 
wreck  these  plans  of  the  Athenians  was  to  send  to  Sicily  at  once 
a  force  of  heavy- armed  men,  and  above  all  a  good  Spartan  general, 
who  alone  would  be  worth  a  whole  army ;  for  the  Sicilians,  dis- 
united and  jealous  of  each  other,  needed  to  have  some  one  among 
them  in  whom  all  would  have  confidence,  and  to  whom  all  would 
defer.  He  represented  to  the  Spartans  the  necessity  of  acting 
promptly  in  the  matter,  for  Syracuse,  isolated  as  she  was,  could 
not  long  hold  out  against  the  Athenians ;  and  if  they  once  got 
possession  of  that  place,  it  would  not  be  a  difficult  thing  for  them 
to  carry  out  the  remainder  of  their  designs. 
1  Thucyd.  vi.  88. 


358  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

Alcibiades  also  urged  upon  the  Spartans  the  importance  of 
resuming  hostihties  against  Athens  at  home,  in  order  to  prevent 
the  Athenians  from  sending  reinforcements  to  their  generals  in 
Sicily.  As  a  part  of  their  plan  of  campaign  in  Greece,  they  should 
seize  and  garrison  Decelea,  a  strong  and  commanding  position  in 
Attica,  only  fourteen  miles  from  Athens.  He  informed  the  Spar- 
tans that  the  Athenians  were  in  constant  fear  lest  their  enemies 
should  do  just  this  thing.  The  occupation  of  this  place  by  a 
Peloponnesian  force  would  be  much  more  annoying  and  disastrous 
to  the  Athenians  than  the  occupation  of  Pylos  by  the  Athenians 
had  been  to  the  Lacedaemonians.  Decelea  would  be  a  thorn  in 
Athens'  side.  Secure  in  this  stronghold,  the  Spartans  could  annoy 
and  keep  in  terror  a  large  part  of  the  Attic  plain.  It  would  be  an 
asylum  for  runaway  slaves,  just  as  Pylos  was  for  Messenian  Helots. 
A  Decelean  garrison  would  also  cut  off  the  Athenians  from  the 
revenue  they  derived  from  their  silver  mines  at  Laurium.  Finally, 
the  fortification  of  Decelea  would  encourage  the  subject  cities  of 
the  Athenians  to  refuse  payment  of  tribute,  and  even  to  openly  re- 
volt ;  for  when  they  saw  the  Peloponnesians  thus  boldly  carrying 
the  war  to  the  gates  of  Athens,  they  would  prevision  the  speedy 
overthrow  of  the  Athenian  power. 

Alcibiades  then  besought  the  Spartans  to  consider  his  counsel 
without  prejudice  because  of  any  harm  he  might  have  done  them 
in  the  past,  and  to  command  his  services.  "  The  more  harm  I 
did  you  as  an  enemy,"  said  he,  "  the  more  good  can  I  do  you  as  a 
friend."  ^ 

Whatever  hesitation  the  Spartans  may  have  felt  in  regard 
to  resuming  the  war  against  Athens  and  carrying  on  hostilities 
both  at  home  and  in  Sicily  was  overcome  by  the  representa- 
tions and  persuasions  of  Alcibiades,  and  they  resolved  to  fortify 
Decelea,  as  he  had  advised,  and  to  send  to  Sicily  their  ablest 
general,  GyHppus,  with  instructions  to  push  the  war  there  with  the 
utmost  vigor.^ 

1  Thucyd.  vi.  89-92,  for  the  whole  speech. 

2  Thucyd.  vi.  93. 


OPERATIONS   OF   THE  ATHENIANS.  359 

Operations  of  the  Athenians  before  Syracuse  during  the  Sum- 
mer of  the  Year  414  B.C.  —  In  the  spring  of  the  year  414  b.c.  the 
Athenian  forces  in  Sicily,  after  having  committed  some  ravages  in 
the  territory  of  the  Syracusans  and  their  alHes,  settled  down  at 
Syracuse,  resolved  to  subject  the  city  to  a  regular  siege.  In  fur- 
therance of  this  purpose,  they  began  the  construction  of  a  wall, 
which  was  intended  to  shut  in  the  city  on  the  land  side  ;  and  later 
in  the  summer  erected  works  calculated  to  facilitate  their  naval 
operations.  The  Syracusans  built  counter-walls,  and  hindered  in 
every  way  they  could  the  progress  of  the  enemy's  works. 

There  were  several  engagements  in  front  of  the  walls,  in  which 
the  Athenians  were  victorious,  the  little  cavalry  force  of  six  or 
seven  hundred  which  they  had  gathered  enabling  them  to  meet 
the  Syracusans  in  the  open  field  on  something  like  equal  terms.  In 
one  of  these  fights  Lamachus  was  killed,  and  the  sole  command 
devolved  upon  Nicias. 

In  spite  of  all  the  efforts  of  the  Syracusans,  the  Athenians  carried 
forward  steadily  the  work  on  their  walls.  Everything  moved  pios- 
perously  with  the  besiegers.  Reinforcements  came  to  them  —  now 
that  the  prospects  of  their  taking  the  city  were  so  bright  —  from 
the  Sicels  in  the  interior  of  the  island  and  from  the  Tyrrhenians. 
The  Syracusans  began  to  lose  hope,  and  even  opened  with  Nicias 
negotiations  for  peace,  which,  however,  came  to  nothing.  Sus- 
picious of  their  generals,  they  deposed  them,  and  chose  others  in 
their  stead. 

The  Arrival  in  Sicily  of  Gylippus.  —  At  this  moment,  when 
everything  was  looking  so  discouraging  to  the  Syracusans, 
Gylippus  arrived.  While  on  his  way  from  Sparta,  before  he 
reached  Italy,  Gylippus  had  received  from  time  to  time  exagger- 
ated reports  of  the  victories  of  the  Athenians  before  Syracuse,  and 
of  the  progress  of  their  investing  walls,  and  had  abandoned  all 
hope  of  saving  Sicily,  but  hoped  that  he  might  still  prevent  the 
Italian  cities  from  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy. 

But  upon  arrival  at  Locri  in  Italy,  Gylippus  received  more  ac- 
curate information  of  the  state  of  things  at  Syracuse,  and  learned 


360  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

that  the  double  investing  wall  of  the  Athenians  was  not  completed, 
as  had  been  reported,  so  that  it  was  yet  possible  to  throw  reinforce- 
ments into  the  city.  Thereupon  he  hastened  to  the  northern 
coast  of  Sicily,  and  collecting  from  Himera,  Selinus,  and  Gela, 
and  from  among  the  native  tribes  of  the  interior,  a  force  of  about 
three  thousand  men,  hurried  across  the  island  to  Syracuse.  He 
arrived  just  as  the  Syracusans,  in  their  disheartenment,  were  about 
to  call  a  meeting  of  the  assembly  to  consider  the  question  whether 
they  should  not  surrender. 

The  arrival  of  Gylippus  put  at  once  a  different  look  upon  affairs. 
He  defeated  the  Athenians  in  a  hard-fought  battle  in  front  of  the 
city,  and  drove  them  behind  their  works.  The  so-called  "  cross- 
wall,"  which  the  Syracusans  had  been  laboring  upon,  was  now  in 
the  course  of  a  single  night  carried  beyond  the  line  of  the  wall 
which  the  Athenians  were  building  around  the  city.  This  counter- 
work rendered  it  impossible  for  the  Athenians  to  make  complete 
their  investment  of  the  city  on  the  land  side. 

The  rising  hopes  of  the  Syracusans  were  now  given  fresh 
encouragement  by  the  arrival  in  their  harbor  of  the  Corinthian 
ships.  They  straightway  began  to  equip  vessels  of  their  own,  in 
order  to  be  able  to  meet  the  Athenians  on  the  sea  as  well  as  on 
the  land.  Gylippus  himself  undertook  an  embassy  to  the  Sicilian 
cities  and  states  of  the  interior  with  the  object  of  forming  alliances 
and  securing  reinforcements.^ 

Doleful  Letter  from  Nicias  to  the  Athenians  at  Home. — 
Such  was  the  situation  at  Syracuse  upon  the  approach  of  winter. 
Nicias  was  disheartened,  and  sent  to  Athens  one  of  the  most 
doleful  letters  that  the  Athenians  ever  received  fron]  a  general  in 
the  field.  He  told  how,  everything  going  prosperously  with  them 
at  first,  the  situation  was  suddenly  and  completely  changed  about 
by  the  coming  of  the  Spartan  Gyhppus,  so  that  they  who  were 
supposed  to  be  the  besiegers  were  really  the  besieged.  They 
were  doing  nothing  on  their  siege-works,  because  they  were  forced 
to  stand  on  the  defensive ;   and  besides,  the  cross-wall  of  the 

1  Thucyd.  vii.  1-7. 


DOLEFUL   LETTER   FROM  NLCLAS.  361 

enemy  made  it  impossible  to  complete  the  investment,  unless 
these  counter-works  could  be  captured.  But  it  would  require 
a  large  force  to  do  this.  The  ships,  he  said,  since  they  had  no 
opportunity  to  draw  them  upon  the  land  and  air  them,  had  become 
water-logged ;  while  at  the  same  time  the  enemy  were  getting 
together  a  navy,  and  would  soon  attack  them  on  the  water,  where 
hitherto  they  had  been  safe.  The  servants  and  the  soldiers  who 
had  come  for  the  sake  of  the  pay,  also  were  running  off.  They 
were  able  to  effect  their  escape  easily  because,  Nicias  explains, 
"  Sicily  is  a  large  place."  Many  of  the  soldiers  had  persuaded 
their  captains  to  accept  slave  substitutes,  and  they  themselves  had 
gone  into  the  trading  business.  "The  most  hopeless  thing  of  all," 
Nicias  adds,  "  is  that,  although  I  am  general,  I  am  not  able  to 
put  a  stop  to  these  disorders,  for  tempers  like  yours  are  not  easily 
controlled."  ^ 

Nicias  then  pointed  out  the  danger  his  army  was  in  of  starving, 
since  the  enemy  had  only  to  gain  over  the  cities  of  Italy,  upon 
which  the  Athenians  had  now  to  rely  for  their  supplies  of  food, 
and  that  would  make  an  end  of  it.  And  all  this  was  likely  to 
happen,  for  the  desperate  condition  of  the  Athenian  army  was  an 
encouragement  to  these  cities  to  espouse  openly  the  cause  of  the 
Syracusans.  Moreover,  the  arrival  of  a  Peloponnesian  army  was 
expected,  so  that  the  Athenians  must  send  out  another  armament 
fully  as  large  as  that  now  in  Sicily.  "You  should  also  send  a 
general  to  succeed  me,"  Nicias  concluded,  "for  I  am  sick,  and 
cannot  remain  here.  ...  I  could  have  written  you  tidings  far 
more  cheering  than  these,  but  none  more  profitable."^ 

This  letter  stirred  the  Athenians  to  activity.  Although  it  was 
now  mid-winter,  they  at  once  sent  Eurymedon  to  Sicily  with  ten 
ships  and  a  large  amount  of  money,  together  with  assurances  to 
Nicias  that  his  fellow-citizens  had  not  forgotten  him,  and  that 
more  help  would  come  in  the  spring. 

1  This  complaint  reveals  to  us  how  difficult  a  thing  it  was  to  maintain  discipline 
in  an  Athenian  army. 

2  Thucyd.  vii.  11-15. 


362    .  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

During  the  remainder  of  the  winter  both  the  Athenians  and  the 
Peloponnesians  were  busy  making  preparations  for  the  campaign 
of  the  ensuing  summer.  The  Athenians  also  kept  a  fleet  of  twenty 
ships  cruising  around  the  Peloponnesus  in  order  to  prevent  any 
ships  of  the  enemy  slipping  out  to  Sicily. 

The  Spartans  formally  renew  the  War  against  Athens  and 
fortify  Decelea  (413  b.c).  —  Early  in  the  spring  of  the  year  413 
B.C.  the  Spartans  under  their  king  Agis  invaded  Attica,  which  for 
a  number  of  years  had  been  exempt  from  their  visits,  and  repeated 
the  devastations  that  had  marked  the  opening  years  of  the  war. 
Having  completed  their  ravages,  they  began  the  fortification  of 
Decelea,  in  accordance  with  the  advice  of  Alcibiades  (p.  358). 

In  thus  invading  the  territory  of  Athens,  the  Lacedaemonians 
of  course  openly  violated  the  provisions  of  the  Peace  of  Nicias. 
But  they  did  not  regard  themselves  as  being,  nor  were  they,  the 
first  to  break  the  truce ;  for  the  preceding  year  the  Athenians,  in 
flagrant  violation  of  the  peace,  had  ravaged  a  part  of  the  shore 
of  Laconia. 

So  the  "  Fifty  Years'  Truce  "  came  to  an  end,  after  only  seven 
years  had  passed  from  the  time  it  was  solemnly  ratified  by  the 
oaths  of  the  Spartans  and  the  Athenians.  Of  course  the  truce  had 
been  from  the  very  first  nominal  rather  than  real ;  yet  until  the 
despoiling  of  the  Laconian  coast  by  the  Athenians,  Sparta  and 
Athens  had  both  carefully  refrained  from  invading  each  other's 
territory,  notwithstanding  their  hostile  forces  had  met  often  enough 
on  the  soil  of  their  alhes.  But  now  it  becomes  open  and  avowed 
war,  with  all  Hellas  without  reserve  from  the  ^gean  to  the 
Tyrrhenian  sea  for  its  arena. 

The  fortification  of  Decelea  was  the  master-stroke  of  the 
Spartans  during  the  war.  Thucydides  says  that  the  occupation 
of  this  place  by  the  enemy  was  "  a  chief  cause  "  of  the  final  fall 
of  Athens.  The  garrison  so  completely  devastated  the  surround- 
ing country  that  all  the  sheep  and  cattle  of  the  Athenians  perished, 
while  a  great  multitude  of  their  slaves  escaped.  The  overland 
route  from  the  Euboean  straits,  by  which  a  large  part  of  the  food 


ATHENIANS  SEND  REINFORCEMENTS    TO  NICIAS.    363 

supplies  of  Athens  was  ordinarily  brought  to  the  city,  was  blocked, 
and  everything  had  now  to  be  brought  in  by  ship.  The  citizens, 
moreover,  were  in  constant  fear  of  a  surprise,  for  Decelea  was 
within  sight  of  Athens,  and  were  worn  out  with  watching  their 
walls  night  and  day.  Indeed,  from  the  time  of  the  occupation  by 
the  enemy  of  Decelea  on  to  the  end  of  the  war  Athens  was  in 
a  state  of  siege. 

The  Athenians  send  Reinforcements  to  Nicias  (413  b.c).  — 
Notwithstanding  the  dangers  that  were  threatening  them  at  home, 
the  Athenians,  with  the  opening  of  the  spring,  and  even  while  the 
Peloponnesians  were  in  Attica  at  work  upon  their  fortifications  at 
Decelea,  sent  Charicles  with  a  fleet  of  thirty  ships  to  do  what  mis- 
chief he  could  round  the  Peloponnesus,  and  at  the  same  time  dis- 
patched Demosthenes  with  sixty-five  ships  to  carry  the  promised 
reinforcements  to  Nicias  at  Syracuse. 

On  his  way  around  the  Peloponnesus,  Demosthenes  aided 
Charicles  in  ravaging  Laconia.  Together  they  fortified  a  spot  on 
the  southernmost  shore  of  the  country,  which  was  to  serve  as  a 
sort  of  second  Pylos.  Demosthenes  then  went  on  to  Corcyra. 
Here  he  met  Eurymedon,  who  was  on  his  way  home  from  Syracuse, 
bearing  news  in  regard  to  the  state  of  things  there.  Eurymedon 
gave  up  his  journey  to  Athens,  and  at  once  united  with  Demos- 
thenes in  collecting  men  and  supplies  from  the  Corcyraeans,  and 
from  other  allies  of  the  Athenians  on  the  adjoining  mainland. 
With  the  armament  thus  reinforced,  they  crossed  the  Ionian  Sea 
to  the  lapygian  shore,  and  then  proceeded  along  the  coast,  pick- 
ing up  men  and  ships  as  they  were  able  at  the  various  ports. 
Strengthened  by  these  reinforcements,  the  generals  finally  sailed 
into  the  harbor  of  Syracuse  with  a  fleet  of  between  seventy  and 
eighty  ships,  carrying  five  thousand  hoplites,  together  with  a  large 
number  of  light-armed  troops  and  siege  suppUes  in  great  variety 
and  abundance. 

The  Athenians  meet  with  Reverses  before  Syracuse  :  the 
Generals  in  Council. — The  arrival  of  Demosthenes  was  timely. 
The  Syracusans,  to  whom  intelligence  had  been  brought  of  the 


364  THE  SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

approach  of  the  new  Athenian  fleet,  had  been  making  determined 
attacks  upon  Nicias  both  on  the  water  and  on  the  land,  hoping  to 
overwhelm  his  forces  before  he  should  receive  the  expected  rein- 
forcements. In  a  two  days'  sea  fight,  in  which  eighty  Syracusan 
engaged  seventy-five  Athenian  ships,  the  Athenians  were  finally 
worsted,  and  lost  seven  vessels  with  their  crews. 

Gylippus,  encouraged  by  the  results  of  this  naval  engagement, 
was  about  to  make  also  an  attack  on  the  enemy  by  land,  when  the 
arrival  of  the  new  Athenian  forces  changed  the  situation.  The 
Athenians  at  once  assumed  the  offensive,  for  Demosthenes  was 
resolved  not  to  repeat  the  mistake  of  Nicias  and  allow  the  enemy 
time  to  recover  from  the  fright  that  his  arrival  had  caused.  He 
planned  an  attack  on  the  cross-wall,  and  also  another  on  Epipolae, 
a  sort  of  table-land  overlooking  the  city  proper.  Both  attempts 
miscarried,  the  attack  on  Epipolse,  which  was  made  in  the  night, 
resulting  in  a  confused  fight,  and  the  repulse  of  the  Athenians  with 
serious  loss.  Many  perished  by  leaping  from  the  cliffs ;  others, 
fleeing  into  the  country,  were  hunted  down  by  the  enemy's  cavalry. 
It  was  an  irreparable  disaster  —  and  the  beginning  of  the  end. 
For  the  Athenians  were  now  thoroughly  disheartened,  since  they 
had  to  bear,  not  only  the  losses  of  battle,  but  also  the  ravages  of 
sickness  resulting  from  their  camp  being  established  on  wet  and 
unhealthy  ground. 

A  council  of  the  Athenian  generals  was  held.  Demosthenes 
advised  the  immediate  withdrawal  of  their  forces  while  the  way  of 
retreat  by  the  sea  was  open  to  them.  He  thought  it  the  part  of 
wisdom  to  save  their  strength  for  the  defense  of  Athens,  since  the 
capture  of  Syracuse  was  now  manifestly  impossible.  He  was  sup- 
ported in  these  views  by  Eurymedon.  But  Nicias  could  not  make 
up  his  mind  to  retreat.  He  was  in  communication  with  certain 
persons  in  Syracuse,  who  kept  giving  him  assurances  that  some- 
thing would  be  done  within  the  city  to  bring  about  its  surrender, 
and  he  was  thus  led  to  still  hope  against  hope.  Then  he  could  not 
bear  the  thought  of  returning  to  Athens  without  having  accom- 
plished anything.     He  recognized  that  things  were  in  a  bad  way 


THE   FATAL  •ECLIPSE.  365 

in  the  Athenian  camp,  but  was  persuaded  that  they  were  in  a  still 
worse  shape  with  the  Syracusans.  The  outcome  of  the  council 
was  that  nothing  was  done,  the  Athenian  army  simply  remaining 
inactive  in  camp. 

The  Fatal  Eclipse.  —  Large  reinforcements  now  came  to  the 
Syracusans  from  the  different  parts  of  Sicily,  and  also  from  the 
Peloponnesus.  These  last  had  eluded  the  Athenian  ships  that 
watched  the  western  shores  of  Greece  in  order  to  intercept  ships 
of  the  Peloponnesians  on  their  way  to  Syracuse,  by  crossing  to 
Africa  and  coasting  along  the  African  shore  to  a  point  opposite 
Sicily,  and  then  putting  across  to  the  island. 

Nicias  was  now  ready  to  yield  to  the  wishes  of  the  other 
generals,  and  preparations  were  at  once  made  for  the  retreat.  Just 
as  the  ships  were  about  to  weigh  anchor,  there  occurred  an 
eclipse  of  the  moon.  This  portent  caused  the  greatest  conster- 
nation among  the  Athenian  troops.  They  interpreted  it  as  an 
unfavorable  omen,  and  demanded  that  the  contemplated  retreat 
should  be  given  up.  Nicias  unfortunately  was  a  superstitious  man, 
having  full  faith  in  omens  and  divination.  He  sought  now  the 
advice,  not  of  his  colleagues,  but  of  his  soothsayers.  They  pro- 
nounced the  portent  to  be  an  unfavorable  one,  and  advised  that 
the  retreat  be  delayed  thirty-seven  days.^ 

Never  did  a  rehance  upon  omens  more  completely  undo  a 
people.  The  salvation  of  the  Athenians  depended  absolutely 
upon  their  immediate  retreat.  The  delay  prescribed  by  the 
diviners  was  fatal.  It  seems  the  irony  of  fate  that  the  Athenians, 
who  of  all  the  peoples  of  antiquity  had  most  completely  freed 
themselves  from  superstition,  who  more  than  any  other  men  had 
learned  to  depend  in  the  management  of  their  affairs  upon  their 
own  intelligence  and  judgment,  should  perish  through  a  supersti- 
tious regard  for  omens  and  divination. 

An  Enumeration  of  the  Forces  gathered  in  and  around 
Syracuse.  —  The  Syracusans  again  attacked  the  Athenians  by  sea 
and  land.     In  a  third  fight  in  the  harbor,  they  defeated  the  Athe- 

1  Thucyd.  vii.  50. 


366  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

nian  fleet,  inflicting  upon  it  great  damage ;  while  in  another  fight 
on  the  land,  they  gained  a  decisive  victory.  Encouraged  by  these 
successes,  they  now  proceeded  to  block  the  mouth  of  the  harbor ; 
for  whereas  hitherto  they  had  thought  only  of  driving  the  Athenian 
ships  away,  now  they  hoped  to  be  able  to  destroy  or  capture  the 
armament  altogether. 

At  this  point  in  his  account  of  the  great  expedition,  before 
passing  to  the  final  catastrophe,  Thucydides,  with  true  dramatic 
instinct,  pauses  to  name  the  peoples  and  to  enumerate  the  forces 
gathered  in  and  around  Syracuse  either  to  share  in  its  spoils  or 
to  help  in  its  defense,  in  order  to  impress  upon  his  readers  the 
magnitude  of  the  approaching  calamity  as  it  touched  the  Athenians 
and  its  significance  as  it  concerned  the  whole  Hellenic  world. 

The  Athenians  had  drawn  with  them  to  the  siege  their  Ionian, 
^olian,  and  Dorian  subjects,  tributaries  and  allies  from  all  the 
islands  and  coast  cities  of  the  ^gean,  as  well  as  from  the  Ionian 
islands  and  the  cities  and  tribes  of  the  western  coast  lands  of 
Greece.  They  had  also  attracted  to  their  service  Cretan  and 
Arcadian  and  ^tolian  mercenaries.  The  Argives  had  followed 
them,  seeking  in  Sicily  a  revenge  upon  the  Spartans  which  they 
could  not  get  at  home  ;  while  several  of  the  Greek  cities  of  Italy 
and  Sicily  had  strengthened  them  with  their  contingents.  Many 
barbarian  tribes  of  both  Sicily  and  Italy,  led  by  friendship  for  the 
Athenians  or  prompted  by  enmity  towards  the  Syracusans,  or 
drawn  by  pay,  also  swelled  the  number  of  the  Athenian  forces. 
The  Syracusans  were  aided  in  the  defense  of  their  city  by  the 
Dorian  peoples  of  the  Sicilian  cities  of  Camarina,  Gelo,  Selinus, 
and  Himera,  together  with  some  of  the  native  tribes  of  the  island. 
From  Greece  proper,  they  were  assisted  first  and  foremost  by 
the  Spartan  Gylippus,  who  was  worth  a  whole  army ;  by  a  force 
of  Lacedaemonian  freedmen  and  Helots,  by  the  Corinthians,  the 
Sicyonians,  the  Boeotians,  Arcadian  mercenaries,  and  others. 

So  many  nations,  Thucydides  asserts,  had  never  before  up  to 
this  time  gathered  around  any  single  city.^ 

1  Thucyd.  vii.  57,  58. 


LAST  FIGHT  IN   THE  HARBOR.  367 

Last  Fight  in  the  Harbor.  —  The  prospect  of  destroying  the 
whole  armament  of  the  Athenians,  and  thereby  not  only  averting 
from  themselves  threatened  enslavement  but  gaining  the  glory  of 
fatally  laming  the  enslavers  of  the  other  Greeks,  inspired  the 
Syracusans  with  the  utmost  courage  and  energy. 

The  entrance  to  the  harbor  which  the  Syracusans  had  resolved 
to  block  up  in  order  to  imprison  the  Athenian  fleet  was  about  a 
mile  wide.  It  was  closed  by  means  of  craft  of  every  kind  anchored 
close  alongside  each  other,  thus  forming  a  sort  of  floating  bridge 
across  the  channel,  with  only  a  narrow  passageway  left  open  for 
the  entrance  and  departure  of  ships. 

The  Athenians  must  now,  since  their  provisions  were  failing, 
fight  their  way  out  either  by  sea  or  by  land.  They  resolved  to  put 
all  their  men,  save  those  needed  to  guard  the  baggage,  on  board 
the  ships,  and  make  a  desperate  attempt  to  break  through  the 
blockade  at  the  mouth  of  the  harbor,  and  thus  open  a  way  of 
escape  by  the  sea.  Failing  in  this,  they  proposed  to  burn  their 
ships,  cut  their  way  through  the  surrounding  enemy,  and  march  to 
some  friendly  city. 

Before  the  manning  of  the  ships,  Nicias  addressed  the  soldiers 
in  a  speech  as  full  of  encouragement  as  the  disheartening  situation 
allowed.  After  having  pointed  out  the  chances  in  their  favor  in  a 
new  sea-fight,  and  addressed  a  few  words  to  the  allies,  he  made  a 
final  appeal  to  the  Athenians  in  these  words  :  "  Let  me  remind 
you  that  there  are  no  more  ships  like  these  in  the  dockyards  of 
the  PeirjEus,  and  that  you  have  no  more  recruits  fit  for  service.  In 
any  event  but  victory  your  enemies  here  will  instantly  sail  against 
Athens,  while  our  countrymen  at  home,  who  are  but  a  remnant, 
will  be  unable  to  defend  themselves  against  the  attacks  of  their 
former  foes  reinforced  by  the  new  invaders.  You  who  are  in 
Sicily  will  instantly  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Syracusans,  and  your 
friends  at  Athens  into  the  hands  of  the  Lacedaemonians.  In  this 
one  struggle  you  have  to  fight  for  yourselves  and  them.  Stand 
firm  therefore  now  if  ever,  and  remember  one  and  all  of  you  who 
are  embarking  that  you  are  both  the  fleet  and  the  army  of  your 


368  THE  SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

country,  and  that  on  you  hangs  the  whole  state  and  the  great  name 
of  Athens."  ^ 

The  ships  were  now  manned,  and  the  fleet  pushed  directly  for 
the  passageway  through  the  line  of  boats  moored  at  the  mouth  of 
the  harbor,  the  intention  of  the  Athenians  being  to  fight  their  way 
out  at  this  point.  Here  they  were  withstood  by  the  Syracusan 
ships,  and  a  terrific  struggle  followed.  The  number  of  ships  en- 
gaged on  both  sides  was  about  two  hundred,  so  that  soon  the  fight 
filled  the  whole  harbor.  All  the  modes  of  sea-fighting  were  prac- 
tised. The  crews  of  ships  discharged  upon  each  other  showers  of 
missiles  of  every  kind,  —  darts,  arrows,  and  stones.  Two  vessels 
would  grapple  each  other,  and  then  the  fight  became  a  hand-to- 
hand  contest  as  on  land.  Again  the  hostile  ships  dashed  at  full 
speed  into  each  other,  and  in  this  way  many  were  broken  to  pieces 
and  sunk.  The  crash  of  the  colliding  ships,  the  shouts  of  the  com- 
batants, the  groans  of  the  wounded,  the  cries  of  those  on  shore, 
—  all  this  created  a  scene  of  indescribable  confusion  and  horror. 

As  the  fight  went  on,  it  became  more  and  more  evident  that  the 
Athenians  would  be  unable  to  force  their  way  out  of  the  harbor. 
Finally  they  gave  way,  and  such  as  could  ran  their  ships  upon  the 
shore  and  fled  to  the  camp.- 

The  Athenians  after  some  Delay  begin  their  Retreat.  —  Nicias 
and  Demosthenes  were  minded  to  man  what  ships  could  be  col- 
lected and  to  try  once  more  to  force  their  way  out  to  sea,  but  the 
panic  among  the  sailors  was  too  great.  They  refused  to  go  on 
board  the  ships.  There  was  now  no  other  course  open  save 
retreat  by  land.  It  was  resolved  to  set  out  that  same  night ;  but 
being  misinformed  in  regard  to  the  state  of  the  roads,  the  Athe- 
nians remained  in  camp  that  night,  and  also  the  following  day. 
This  delay  destroyed  whatever  chance  there  remained  to  them  of 
escape  after  the  defeat  in  the  harbor ;  for  during  this  interval 
Hermocrates  and  Gylippus  were  busy  blocking  the  roads,  and 
setting  guards  at  all  the  fords  of  the  rivers  and  in  the  passes  of  the 
hills.^ 

1  Thucyd.  vii.  64.  2  Thucyd.  vii.  70,  71.  ^  Thucyd.  vii.  72-74. 


THE  END    OF   THE    TRAGEDY.  369 

Finally  the  Athenians,  having  made  such  preparations  as  they 
were  able  for  their  march,  set  out  on  their  retreat.  ''  They  were," 
says  Thucydides,  whose  words  alone  can  picture  the  distress  of 
the  scene,  "  in  a  dreadful  condition  :  not  only  was  there  the  great 
fact  that  they  had  lost  their  whole  fleet,  and  instead  of  their  ex- 
pected triumph  had  brought  the  utmost  peril  upon  Athens  as  well 
as  upon  themselves,  but  also  the  sights  which  presented  themselves 
as  they  quitted  the  camp  were  painful  to  every  eye  and  mind. 
The  dead  were  unburied,  and  when  any  one  saw  the  body  of  a 
friend  lying  on  the  ground,  he  was  smitten  with  sorrow  and  dread, 
while  the  sick  and  wounded  who  still  survived,  but  had  to  be  left, 
were  even  a  greater  trial  to  the  living,  and  more  to  be  pitied  than 
those  who  were  gone..  Their  prayers  and  lamentations  drove  their 
companions  to  distraction  ...  so  that  the  whole  army  was  in 
tears.  There  was  also  a  general  feeling  of  shame  and  self- 
reproach,  —  indeed  they  seemed  not  like  an  army,  but  like  the 
fugitive  population  of  a  city  captured  after  a  siege ;  and  of  a 
great  city  too  :  for  the  whole  multitude  who  were  marching  num- 
bered not  less  than  forty  thousand.^ 

The  End  of  the  Tragedy.  —  Nicias,  whose  hesitating,  wavering 
policy  and  faith  in  omens  had  contributed  so  largely  to  the  disas- 
ter, was  at  his  best  at  this  moment  of  unutterable  distress  and 
dejection.  He  tried  to  reanimate  the  courage  of  the  soldiers,  and 
bade  them  not  despair,  because  the  jealousy  of  the  gods  (p.  54) 
—  if  it  was  that  which  had  brought  about  their  dreadful  fall  — 
must  certainly  be  disarmed  by  the  sight  of  their  pitiable  condition, 
and  they  might  hope  now  for  Heaven's  pity  and  help. 

Moving  in  two  divisions,  one  under  the  lead  of  Nicias  and  the 
other  under  that  of  Demosthenes,  the  Athenians  crossed  the  river 
Anapus,  and  hurried  on  towards  the  south.  The  Syracusans  im- 
peded in  front  their  march,  and  harassed  them  by  constant  attacks 
on  flank  and  rear.  The  first  day  they  advanced  only  a  little  over 
four  miles,  and  on  the  next  only  half  as  far.  On  the  third  day 
they  made    only  a   slight   advance,  being   forced   to    engage    in 

1  Thucyd.  vii.  75. 


370  THE   SICILIAN  EXPEDITION. 

incessant  fighting  with  the  enemy.  The  fourth  day's  march 
brought  them  to  a  pass  in  the  hills,  which  the  enemy  had  blocked 
with  a  wall.  They  attempted  to  force  their  passage,  but  failed. 
The  next  day  —  the  fifth  —  they  advanced  only  three-quarters  of 
a  mile.  The  following  night,  leaving  their  camp-fires  burning, 
they  resumed  their  flight,  changing  their  course  so  that  it  was 
directed  towards  the  southern  shore  of  the  island  instead  of  in 
the  direction  of  Catana. 

In  the  night  march  a  panic  occurred,  and  the  two  divisions  in 
which  the  army  was  moving  became  widely  separated,  that  led 
by  Demosthenes  being  in  the  rear.  About  noon  the  next  day  this 
division,  which  was  pushing  forward  after  the  other  in  great  dis- 
order, was  overtaken  by  the  Syracusan  cavalry,  and  before  night 
harassed  into  a  surrender,  which  was  made  on  the  condition  that 
their  lives  should  be  spared.  The  number  that  surrendered  was 
about  six  thousand. 

The  Syracusans  now  hastened  after  the  other  division  of  the 
army.  Soon  overtaking  the  fugitives,  they  pressed  upon  and  har- 
assed them.  Nicias  endeavored  in  vain  to  secure  from  the  enemy 
honorable  terms  of  surrender.  The  little  river  Assinarus  marked 
the  end  of  this  part  of  the  tragedy.  As  the  fugitives  rushed  in 
tangled  crowds  into  the  stream  in  a  frantic  endeavor  to  cross,  they 
were  slaughtered  in  heaps  by  their  pursuers,  who  from  the  high 
bank  threw  down  missiles  upon  them,  or  following  them  into  the 
water,  cut  them  down  without  resistance.  Nicias  now  resolved  to 
put  an  end  to  the  dreadful  slaughter  by  an  unconditional  surren- 
der to  Gylippus.  The  kiUing  now  ceased,  and  the  survivors  were 
allowed  to  give  themselves  up  as  prisoners.  Some,  however, 
escaped,  and,  after  long  wanderings  about  the  country,  reached  the 
friendly  city  of  Catana. 

The  prisoners,  about  seven  thousand  in  number,  were  crowded 
in  deep,  open  stone-quarries  around  Syracuse,  in  which  prison-pens 
hundreds  soon  died  of  exposure  and  starvation.  Most  of  the 
wretched  survivors  were  finally  sold  into  slavery. 

The  generals  Nicias  and   Demosthenes  were    both    executed. 


THE   END    OF   THE    TRAGEDY.  371 

Gylippus  would  have  been  glad  to  have  taken  Demosthenes  alive  to 
Sparta,  knowing  that  a  view  in  the  plight  of  a  prisoner  of  the  man 
who  had  brought  upon  them  the  disgrace  of  Pylos,  would  be  a  pe- 
culiarly grateful  sight  to  the  Spartans  ;  but  the  Syracusans  and  their 
allies  would  not  have  it  so.  Nicias  apparently  was  the  victim  of  his 
wealth,  since  his  enemies,  fearing  that  if  left  alive  he  would  secure 
release  through  bribery,  insisted  upon  his  being  put  to  death.^ 

The  tragedy  of  the  Sicilian  Expedition  was  now  ended.  Two 
centuries  were  to  pass  before  Sicily  was  again  to  become  the  arena 
of  transactions  equally  significant  for  universal  history.  Then 
another  imperial  city  was  to  seek  in  Sicily,  with  Heaven  more  pro- 
pitious, the  path  to  universal  dominion. 

References.  —  Jowett's  Thucydides,  vi.  and  vii.  Plutarch,  Lives  of  Nicias 
and  Alcibiades.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  iii.  pp.  321-413.  Grote, 
History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  v.  pp.  516-558;  ib.  vol.  vi.  pp. 
1-84;  (twelve  volume  ed.)  vol.  vii.  pp.  1 18-162  and  163-250.  For  a  con- 
nected history  of  the  Sicilian  Greek  cities,  see  Freeman's  The  Story  of  Sicily. 
Creasy,  Decisive  Battles  of  the  World,  ch.  ii.,  entitled  "Defeat  of  the  Athe- 
nians at  Syracuse,  B.C.  413."  Cox,  Lives  of  Greek  Statesmen  :  "  Nikias  "  and 
"  Hermocrates." 

1  Thucyd,  vii.  76-87. 


372  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO   FALL    OF  ATHENS. 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

FROM    THE   SICILIAN    DISASTER   TO   THE   FALL   OF   ATHENS: 
THE   DECELEAN    WAR. 

(413-404    B.C.) 

How  the  Intelligence  of  the  Disaster  in  Sicily  was  received  at 
Athens.  — There  was  never  any  official  report  made  to  the  Athe- 
nians at  home  respecting  the  fate  of  their  fleet  and  army  in  Sicily  ; 
for  there  was  no  one  left  who  could  make  such  a  report.  Several 
weeks  passed  before  the  news  of  the  disaster  reached  Athens  ;  and 
when  finally  chance  survivors  of  the  catastrophe  came  in  with  the 
terrible  intelligence,  the  Athenians  treated  as  ridiculous  fabrica- 
tions their  reports  of  what  had  happened  in  the  island.  It  was  no 
wonder  that  the  Athenians  refused  to  believe  the  stories  of  the 
fugitives  ;  the  tidings  were  simply  incredible. 

Finally,  however,  the  Athenians  were  forced  to  recognize  the 
truth  of  the  reports.  Their  first  incredulity  now  gave  way  to 
mingled  feelings  of  anger,  grief,  and  fear.  Their  first  emotions, 
when  at  last  they  really  comprehended  the  magnitude  and  com- 
pleteness of  the  disaster  that  had  befallen  their  city,  seem  to 
have  been  feelings  of  furious  wrath  against  the  orators,  soothsayers, 
oracle-mongers,  and  all  who  had  advised  or  encouraged  the  under- 
taking, forgetting  that  it  was  they  themselves  who,  in  spite  of  the 
advice  of  Nicias  and  others,  had  voted  the  expedition.^ 

But  even  anger  had  to  make  place  for  grief.  It  was  the  young 
men  especially  who  had  eagerly  pushed  forward  for  a  place  in  the 
departing  ships.     There  was  scarcely  a  family  in  Athens  that  did 

1  Thucyd.  vii.  i. 


INTELLIGENCE    OF  DISASTER  RECEIVED.  373 

not  mourn  a  son  or  near  relative,  while  all  mourned  neighbors  and 
friends  and  fellow-citizens.  And  the  cause  of  grief  was  not  simply 
that  relatives  and  friends  had  not  returned ;  all  the  circumstances 
attending  their  fate  made  the  grief  of  those  remaining  the  deeper 
and  more  inconsolable.  Uncertainty  shrouded  the  fate  of  friends  ; 
the  dead  lay  without  the  indispensable  rites  of  burial ;  the  living, 
reserved  to  a  worse  fate,  were  suffering  the  horrors  of  imprison- 
ment in  the  quarry-mines  of  Syracuse,  or  were  already  toiling  in 
slavery. 

A  panic  of  fear,  too,  had  seized  upon  the  people.  Nor  were 
their  apprehensions  ungrounded.  They  saw  their  city  stripped  of 
its  men  and  ships,  and  thus  defenseless  in  the  midst  of  a  world  of 
enemies.  They  thought  nothing  else  than  that  the  Syracusans 
and  their  confederates  would  sail  straightway  to  the  Peirseus.  They 
expected  that  their  subject  alHes  everywhere  on  the  islands  and 
along  the  continental  shores  would  take  advantage  of  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  Athenian  navy  and  at  once  revolt.  In  imagination  they 
saw  all  their,  old  deadly  enemies,  the  Boeotians,  the  Corinthians, 
the  Spartans,  and  all  the  others,  —  they  realized  now  in  their  help- 
lessness how  many  enemies  they  had  made,  —  already  at  their  city 
gates. 

What  contributed  greatly  to  this  feeling  of  helpless  fear  was  the 
fact  that  the  city,  as  we  have  seen,  was  already  virtually  in  a  state 
of  siege  by  land,  through  the  occupation  of  Decelea  by  the 
Peloponnesians  (p.  362).  The  enemy  in  this  position  commanded 
both  the  roads  leading  to  Euboea,  and  thus  cut  off  the  Athenians 
from  land  communication  with  that  island,  whence  they  drew  a 
considerable  part  of  their  food  supplies.  The  sea- path  was  indeed 
still  open,  but  that  was  long  and  dangerous.  Attica  was  not  only 
lost  to  Athens,  but  was  practically  transformed  into  a  Laconian 
land.  A  considerable  part  of  the  plain  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Decelea  was  in  the  permanent  possession  of  the  enemy,  while 
the  larger  portion  of  the  remainder  was  constantly  harried  by  the 
marauding  bands  of  the  hostile  garrison,  who  drew  from  the 
country  their  supplies.     Moreover,  the    nearness    of  the    enemy 


374  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO  FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

made  it  necessary  for  the  Athenians  to  keep  watch  on  their  walls 
day  and  night,  and  thus  they  were  harassed  and  wearied  by 
unreheved  anxiety  and  unintermitted  watching. 

Measures  adopted  by  the  Athenians  for  maintaining  the  War. 
—  After  a  time  the  vehemence  of  their  first  feehngs  gave  place 
in  the  Athenians  to  a  calmer  temper,  and  gradually,  since  the 
expected  enemy  did  not  appear,  to  a  more  hopeful  mood ;  and 
with  most  admirable  courage  they  set  to  work  to  retrieve  their 
seemingly  irretrievable  fortune. 

One  of  their  first  measures  was  the  appointment  of  a  sort  of  com- 
mittee of  public  safety  or  council  of  ten  persons  of  elderly  age,^ 
whose  duty  it  should  be  to  devise  measures  for  the  public  defense. 
As  it  is  probable  that  all  important  measures  were  first  considered 
by  this  Board  of  Elders  before  submission  to  the  Ecclesia,  it  is 
apparent  that  this  reform  amounted  practically  to  a  fundamental 
change  in  the  constitution.  The  events  of  the  past  few  months 
had  discredited  and  humbled  the  extreme  democratical  party. 
All  recognized  that  the  real  source  of  the  calamity  which  had 
befallen  the  city  was  the  ease  with  which  ill-conceived  measures, 
even  measures  touching  the  very  existence  of  the  empire,  might  be 
brought  forward  by  restless  and  ambitious  demagogues  and  under 
the  impulse  of  excitement  hurried  to  a  decisive  vote.  The  new 
council  remedied,  in  a  measure  at  least,  this  acknowledged  weak- 
ness in  the  democratical  constitution.  Its  proposal  and  adoption 
indicate  at  once  the  activity  and  strength  of  the  oligarchical  party, 
and  the  at  least  momentarily  dejected,  self-distrustful,  and  pliant 
mood  of  the  democracy. 

Measures  were  now  concerted  for  the  raising  of  a  new  army,  for 
the  awful  disaster  had  swept  away  more  than  one-third  of  the 
effective  fighting-force  of  the  city.  Counting  their  aUies,  the 
Athenians  had  lost  in  Sicily  sixty  thousand  men.^  To  fill,  in  so  far 
as  possible,  the  great  gaps  in  their  ranks,  they  now,  as  in  the  crisis 
before  the  battle  of  Salamis,  passed  a  decree  recalling  from  ban- 

1  Bearing  the  title  of  ProbuU,  IIp6^ouAol. 

2  Curtius,  Griech.  Gescli.  ii.  679,  680. 


MEASURES  ADOPTED  FOR  MAINTAINING    WAR.      375 

ishment  all  save  such  as  had  actually  joined  the  enemy.  The 
garrisons  on  the  Peloponnesian  shore,  save  the  one  at  Pylos,  were 
called  home  to  help  man  the  walls  of  the  city.  The  promontory 
of  Sunium  was  fortified,  and  a  garrison  established  there  to  guard 
the  sea-way  to  Euboea  and  to  watch  the  slaves  in  the  state  mines 
at  Sunium. 

And  as  with  the  army,  so  was  it  with  the  fleet.  It  had  been 
practically  swept  out  of  existence.  Nearly  two  hundred  ships  had 
been  lost  on  the  Sicilian  shores.  The  harbor  of  the  Peirseus  was 
almost  empty.  With  the  exception  of  a  small  squadron  lying  at 
Naupactus,  in  the  Corinthian  Gulf,  and  a  few  other  vessels,  the 
Athenians  were  without  a  war-ship.  But  they  now  set  energeti- 
cally to  work  to  repair  their  loss.  Ship  timber  was  brought  from 
Macedonia  and  Thrace,  and  the  docks  of  the  Peirseus  soon  pre- 
sented a  scene  of  bustling  activity.  The  spring  following  the 
disaster  saw  a  considerable  fleet  of  new  ships  ready  to  challenge 
again  the  enemy  on  the  seas. 

The  treasury,  too,  was  empty.  The  Athenians,  confident  of 
their  success  in  Sicily  and  their  enrichment  by  the  spoils  of  the 
war  and  the  acquisition  of  new  tribute-paying  subjects,  had  spared 
nothing  in  the  way  of  expense  in  fitting  out  their  armament. 
They  had  risked  all  on  a  single  throw  of  the  die  of  fortune  —  and 
had  lost.  And  not  only  had  they  sunk  vast  sums  of  money,  public 
and  private,  in  the  undertaking,  but  the  misfortune  had  deprived 
them  of  a  large  part  of  their  regular  income.  The  occupation  of 
Decelea  by  the  enemy  not  only  impoverished  the  Athenian  land- 
lords, but  also  cut  off  the  city  from  various  sources  of  revenue 
which  in  ordinary  times  were  drawn  from  the  courts  and  markets. 
Furthermore  the  tribute  from  the  allies  had  become  a  more 
precarious  source  of  revenue,  and  was  collected  with  increased 
difficulty. 

These  financial  embarrassments  were  met  first  by  the  adoption 
of  measures  of  rigid  economy  in  the  public  affairs.  The  appro- 
priations for  festivals,  sacrifices  in  the  temples,  and  the  plays  in 
the  theatres  were  cut  down  as  much  as  possible.     Then  in  place  of 


376  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO   FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

the  tribute  hitherto  paid  by  the  subject  cities,  a  duty  of  five  per 
cent  was  imposed  upon  all  imports  and  exports  at  the  harbors  of  the 
allies.  It  was  thought  that  this  could  be  collected  with  less  diffi- 
culty than  the  tribute  and  would  besides  prove  more  remunerative.^ 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  following  the  disaster,  Chios  having 
revolted  and  the  loss  of  all  Ionia  being  threatened,  the  Athenians 
voted  to  use  for  the  building  and  manning  of  ships  the  thousand 
talents  kept  by  the  advice  of  Pericles  as  a  reserve  on  the  Acropo- 
lis, to  be  used  only  in  case  Athens  should  be  attacked  by  sea 
(p.  285).  In  using  this  reserve  the  Athenians  may  have  been 
violating  the  letter,  but  certainly  not  the  spirit,  of  the  decree 
creating  the  fund  ;  for  though  Athens  was  not  at  this  moment 
the  direct  object  of  a  sea-attack,  still  the  previsioned  moment  of 
imminent  danger  to  the  life  of  the  state  had  now  come.  The 
danger  was  as  threatening  and  immediate  as  though  the  enemy's 
fleet  were  at  the  entrance  to  the  Peiraeus. 

The  Situation  at  Sparta  and  among  her  Allies.  —  Having  now 
noticed  the  situation  at  Athens,  we  must  direct  our  view  to  her 
enemies  and  observe  more  closely  the  number,  strength,  and  rela- 
tions of  the  cities  and  states  against  which  she  was  preparing  her 
defense.  A  glance  over  the  Mediterranean  world  reveals  Athens 
isolated  in  a  sea  of  enemies.  We  see  Greeks  and  barbarians, 
moved  by  diverse  passions  and  motives,  —  revenge,  jealousy,  hope 
of  regaining  lost  liberty,  desire  of  retaining  threatened  indepen- 
dence, or  prospect  of  a  share  in  the  spoils  and  glory  of  victory,  — 
uniting  their  forces  for  her  destruction. 

Sparta,  with  lost  prestige  regained  by  the  achievements  of  her 
general  Gylippus,  was  of  course  the  recognized  head  and  centre 
of  the  alliance.  In  her  king  Agis  she  had  an  active,  capable,  and 
ambitious  leader,  who,  invested  with  extraordinary  war-powers, 
was  in  command  at  Decelea.  The  importance  to  the  enemy  of 
the  occupation  of  this  Attic  stronghold  we  have  already  noticed 

1  The  Athenians  were  disappointed  in  their  expectations  in  regard  to  this  innova- 
tion, and  after  a  short  trial  of  the  new  system  of  duties  returned  to  the  old  plan  of 
assessments  and  tribute. 


THE   SITUATION  AT  SPARTA.  377 

(p.  373).  Such  a  determining  influence  did  the  possession  of  the 
place  by  the  Peloponnesians  exercise  upon  the  remainder  of  the 
war  that  this  latter  portion  of  it  is  known  as  the  Decelean  War. 

In  alliance  with  Sparta  were  all  her  old  confederates  in  Greece 
proper,  chief  among  whom  were  the  Boeotians  and  the  Corinthians, 
with  their  war  strength,  unlike  that  of  Athens,  still  unshattered. 

But  the  attack  of  the  Athenians  upon  Sicily  had  drawn  the 
western  portion  of  the  Hellenic  world  into  the  struggle,  and  Syra- 
cuse was  now  preparing  an  armament  to  aid  the  Peloponnesians  in 
what  it  was  thought  would  be  a  short  and  final  campaign.  Party 
feeling  there,  however,  for  the  war  was  naturally  redounding  to  the 
advantage  of  the  aristocrats,  since  Hermocrates  was  a  member  of 
that  party,  prevented  Syracuse  from  playing  in  the  coming  war  a 
part  in  correspondence  with  her  real  strength  and  resources.  Be- 
sides, the  Egestaeans,  left  without  friends  in  the  island  through  the 
driving  out  of  the  Athenians,  had  invited  the  Carthaginians  to 
their  aid,  and  this  new  enemy  kept  the  Syracusans  busied  at  home, 
or  at  least  divided  their  attention,  and  diverted  a  portion  of  their 
forces  from  the  war  of  revenge  in  Greece. 

In  the  East,  the  Persians  were  again  active,  and  were  laying 
claims  to  the  larger  part  of  the  Athenian  empire  as  their  share  of 
the  spoils.  Taking  advantage  of  the  destruction  of  the  Athenian 
fleet,  Darius  IL,  who  at  this  time  held  the  Persian  throne,  asserted 
his  title  to  all  the  lands  that  his  ancestors  had  ever  held,  even  for 
a  moment.  Since  at  the  time  of  the  great  invasion  the  Persians 
had  pressed  into  Greece  as  far  as  the  Isthmus,  and  had  received 
earth  and  water  from  all  the  coast  cities  on  the  way,  as  well  as 
from  the  islands  of  the  ^gean,  it  followed  that  his  claims  covered 
the  chief  part  of  the  Athenian  possessions. 

As  a  practical  assertion  of  his  claims,  Darius  was  now  demand- 
ing of  his  satraps  in  Asia  Minor  —  Tissaphernes,  governor  of  the 
middle  and  southern  provinces,  and  Pharnabazus,  governor  of 
the  Hellespontine  and  northern  districts  ^  —  the  tribute  due  from 

1  Pharnabazus  held  the  regions  on  the  Hellespont,  together  with  Phrygia,  Bithy- 
nia,  and  Cappadocia. 


378  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO   FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

the  Greek  cities  of  the  coast,  which  had  been  so  long  wrongfully 
diverted  from  Susa  to  Athens.  This  demand  of  the  king  upon  his 
satraps  created  a  new  situation  on  the  frontier  between  Persia  and 
Hellas.  It  meant  a  renewal,  under  changed  conditions,  of  the  old 
struggle  begun  in  Ionia  two  generations  before. 

For  the  satraps  must  collect  the  tribute,  now  being  gathered  by 
the  Athenian  collectors,  or  answer  to  their  master  for  their  failure. 
To  reach  the  desired  end,  the  Athenians  must  be  driven  out. 
Since  the  Persian  power  had  fallen  so  low  that  no  help  could  be 
looked  for  from  Susa,  the  satraps  must  find  in  their  own  provinces, 
and  in  the  assistance  of  Greek  allies,  the  means  of  attaining  their 
ends.  Naturally  they  turned  to  Sparta.  The  negotiations  and 
treaties  between  Persia  and  Sparta,  effected  through  the  mediation 
of  Alcibiades,  we  shall  notice  later.  Our  present  aim  is  merely  to 
get  the  situation  clearly  before  us. 

Now  there  arose,  as  was  natural,  a  rivalry  between  the  two 
satraps,  for  the  alliance  and  help  of  the  Spartans.  Tissaphernes 
labored  to  secure  their  assistance  first.  The  cities  of  Ionia  and 
the  adjacent  islands,  particularly  the  important  island  of  Chios, 
were  ready  to  revolt,  and  he  urged  that  it  would  be  better  to 
begin  the  work  of  driving  out  the  Athenians,  on  this  part  of  the 
coast.  He  offered  to  bring  up  the  Phoenician  fleet  and  join  it  to 
the  Peloponnesian  armament,  and  to  provide  for  the  monthly  pay 
of  the  crews  of  the  Greek  ships. 

Pharnabazus  exerted  himself  to  outbid  Tissaphernes  in  ofifers  of 
money,  and  urged  the  Spartans  to  join  in  driving  out  first  the  Athe- 
nians from  the  Hellespontine  region,  the  loss  of  which  on  account 
of  their  Euxine  trade  would,  he  argued,  give  a  much  severer  blow 
to  their  power  than  would  the  loss  of  Ionia. 

Alcibiades,  now  at  Sparta,  favored  the  suit  of  Tissaphernes  and 
the  Chians ;  for  these  islanders,  contemplating  revolt,  had  sent  an 
embassy  to  the  Spartans  for  aid.  Influenced  by  him,  the  Spartans 
were  led  to  promise  to  send  help  first  to  Ionia.  They  voted  forty 
ships  for  the  enterprise,  which  were  to  set  out  with  the  opening 
of  the  spring. 


THE   REVOLT   OF  CHIOS.  379 

But  the  best  allies  of  Sparta  were  after  all  to  be  found,  not  in 
her  Hellenic  confederates  or  among  the  Asiatic  barbarians,  but 
within  the  cities  themselves  of  the  Athenian  empire.  Everywhere 
the  oligarchical  party,  since  the  Sicilian  disaster,  had  lifted  its 
head,  and  was  ready  to  form  any  kind  of  alliance,  with  Spartan  or 
with  Mede,  if  only  could  be  compassed  the  ruin  of  the  Athenian 
democracy.  We  shall  soon  see  this  party  at  work  both  in  the  sub- 
ject cities  of  Athens  and  within  the  walls  of  Athens  itself. 

Such  was  the  situation  throughout  the  Mediterranean  world  dur- 
ing the  winter  following  the  destruction  of  the  i\thenian  fleet  and 
army  before  Syracuse. 

The  Revolt  of  Chios  and  other  Allies  of  Athens  :  Activity  of 
Alcibiades  :  Military  Operations  of  the  Summer  (412  b.c). — 
With  the  opening  of  the  spring  of  the  year  412  B.C.,  the  twentieth 
of  the  war,  the  Peloponnesians  began  to  carry  out  the  plans  which 
they  had  matured  during  the  winter,  by  dragging  twenty-one  of 
their  ships  across  the  Isthmus  from  the  Corinthian  Gulf,  intending 
to  send  them  to  Chios  in  accordance  with  their  promise  to  the 
Chian  conspirators  to  give  them  aid  in  their  proposed  revolt  from 
Athens.^  But  the  Athenians  were  on  the  alert.  Putting  out  after 
the  ships,  they  drove  them  into  a  roadstead  on  the  coast  of  Argolis, 
and  blockaded  them  there. 

Alcibiades,  who  was  at  Sparta,  fearing  that  this  miscarriage  would 
discourage  the  Chian  conspirators  and  delay  the  concerted  rising, 
prevailed  upon  the  Spartans  to  send  him  straightway  to  Chios, 
promising  to  raise  a  revolt  against  Athens  not  only  in  that 
island  but  throughout  Ionia.  Arriving  at  Chios,  Alcibiades,  keep- 
ing back  the  truth  in  regard  to  the  misfortune  that  had  befallen 
the  squadron  that  had  set  out  from  the  Isthmus,  represented  to  the 
Chian  conspirators  that  the  five  ships  accompanying  him  were  the 
advance  squadron  of  a  large  Peloponnesian  fleet  on  its  way  to 
the  island.  Relying  upon  his  representations,  the  Chians  at  once 
revolted  from  Athens. 

1  During  the  winter  Chios  had  been  secretly  received  into  the  Peloponnesian 
alliance. 


380  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO  FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

The  defection  of  Chios  was  a  heavy  blow  to  the  Athenians. 
This  island  was  the  most  important  of  all  their  allies,  and  its 
example  was  sure  to  be  followed  by  others.  Notwithstanding  the 
loss  in  ships  which  the  Chians  had  sustained  while  fighting  along- 
side their  suzerain  in  the  Sicilian  waters,  they  still  possessed  fifty- 
three  ships  ready  manned  for  service. 

At  the  instigation  of  Alcibiades,  Erythrae,  opposite  Chios  on  the 
mainland,  now  also  revolted,  and  then  in  quick  succession  Cla- 
zomenae,  Miletus,  and  other  cities  followed  her  example.  Thus  the 
empire  of  Athens  in  Ionia  crumbled  to  pieces  at  the  word  and 
touch  of  Alcibiades.  His  purpose  was  to  spread  the  revolt  as 
widely  as  possible  among  the  Ionian  states,  and  then  to  raise 
against  Athens  her  aUies  in  the  region  of  the  Hellespont. 

Having  set  the  Ionian  revolt  in  full  course,  Alcibiades  next 
busied  himself  in  eff'ecting  an  alliance  between  Tissaphernes  and 
Sparta.  The  negotiations  here  issued  in  a  treaty  which  Tissa- 
phernes arranged  in  the  name  of  the  Great  King  (412  B.C.).  The 
chief  point  of  the  treaty  was  the  recognition  by  Sparta  of  the 
claims  of  the  Persians  upon  all  the  lands  ever  held  by  the  Persian 
kings.  The  treaty  further  bound  the  contracting  parties  to  a 
defensive  and  offensive  alliance. 

The  acknowledgment  by  Sparta  of  any  such  claims  as   those 

put  forward  by  the  Persian  king  was  of  course  a  most  shameful 

betrayal  by  her  of  the  very  cities  to  which  she  was  holding  herself 

out  as  a  liberator.     The  Persian  claims  were  denounced    by  all 

right-minded  Hellenes  as  monstrous,  and  the  compact  as  infamous. 

The  treaty  was  afterwards  modified,  some  of  its  clauses  which  were 

most  offensive  to  Hellenic  feeling  being  softened ;  but  Sparta  in 

having  ever  become  a  party  to  such  an  alliance  had  published 

to  the  Hellenic  world  the  hollowness  of  her  professions  as  the 

defender  of  the  autonomy  of  the  Greek  cities  and  the  upholder  of 

their  liberties.^ 

1  It  is  not  improbable  that  the  articles  of  the  treaty  were  framed  by  Alcibiades 
himself,  who  aimed  to  forge  a  double-edged  weapon  which  he  could  use  either 
against  Athens  or  Sparta  as  circumstances  should  determine.  He  certainly  did 
use  it  against  each  in  turn.     Curtius,  Griech.  Gesch.  ii.  6  (6th  ed.). 


THE    CONSPIRACY   OF   THE   FOUR   HUNDRED.         381 

While  the  incendiary  Alcibiades  was  thus  employed  among  the 
allies  of  Athens  and  with  Tissaphernes,  the  Athenians  were  putting 
forth  strenuous  efforts  to  quench  the  conflagration  he  was  spreading 
and  to  save  their  endangered  possessions  in  and  around  Ionia. 
Fortunately  for  them,  the  island  of  Samos  was  by  the  democratic 
party  there  held  firm  in  its  allegiance.  The  oligarchical  party  had 
just  made  an  attempt  to  carry  the  island  over  to  the  side  of  the 
Peloponnesians,  but  the  people  had  risen  against  them,  and  had 
killed  or  driven  into  exile  the  chief  conspirators.  Hereupon  the 
Athenians,  moved  by  gratitude  and  considerations  of  policy,  had 
given  to  the  Samians  their  independence,  —  that  is,  lifted  them 
from  the  status  of  tribute-paying  subjects  to  that  of  equal  allies. 
It  was  this  island,  thus  secured  in  its  loyalty  to  Athens,  which  was 
made  by  the  Athenians  the  headquarters  for  their  navy  and  army, 
and  their  watch-station  in  the  ^^gean. 

Having  gathered  at  Samos  their  forces,  the  Athenians  began  a 
campaign  against  the  revolted  cities.  Lesbos,  which  the  Chians 
had  persuaded  to  join  in  the  revolt,  was  reconquered  ;  Clazomenae 
also  was  regained ;  the  fields  of  Chios  were  ravaged,  and  Miletus 
was  blockaded.  It  was  now  towards  the  close  of  summer,  and  the 
Athenians  were  making  every  effort  to  force  the  place  to  surrender 
before  the  coming  of  winter,  and  thus  to  give  a  crushing  blow  to 
the  rebellion.  And  it  is  probable  that  they  would  have  succeeded 
in  taking  the  city  in  spite  of  the  efforts  of  the  Spartans  and  their 
allies  to  save  it,  had  not  just  at  the  critical  moment  the  Syracusan 
Hermocrates  appeared  upon  the  scene  with  twenty-two  Sicilian 
ships.  They  were  now  forced  to  raise  the  blockade  and  to  with- 
draw to  Samos.  Thus  the  summer  ended  with  the  revolt  only  half 
suppressed.  The  versatile  Alcibiades  was  now  preparing  to  give 
affairs  another  turn. 

The  Conspiracy  of  the  Four  Hundred  (411  b.c).  —  Alcibiades 
had  succeeded  in  making  in  his  new  surroundings  at  Sparta  and 
later  in  Ionia  many  enemies,  political  and  personal.  Receiving 
warning  that  his  life  was  in  danger  in  the  Spartan  camp,  he  fled  to 
the  court  of  Tissaphernes,  where  he  found  a  friendly  reception,  and 


382  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO  FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

very  soon  came  to  exercise  a  great  influence  over  the  satrap.  He 
told  him  that  his  poUcy  should  be  to  make  an  ally  of  neither  Sparta 
nor  Athens,  but  to  keep  them  engaged  in  wasting  one  another's 
strength,  and  allow  neither  to  gain  a  decided  supremacy  in  Greece. 

This  advice  was  followed,  for  it  fell  in  exactly  with  Tissaphernes' 
own  view  of  the  situation.  The  satrap  kept  promising  the  Spartans 
that  he  would  bring  up  the  Phoenician  fleet  (p.  378),  but  always 
found  some  excuse  for  breaking  his  promise.  Money  for  the  pay 
of  the  troops  was  doled  out  with  exasperating  parsimony  ;  yet  sufli- 
cient  was  advanced  to  prevent  an  open  rupture  with  the  Pelopon- 
nesians. 

But  Alcibiades'  real  aim  was  to  secure  a  return  to  Athens.  To 
pave  the  way  for  his  recall,  he  now  began  to  stir  up  trouble  among 
the  Athenians,  with  the  view  to  making  himself  indispensable  to 
the  popular  party.  Taking  advantage  of  the  hatred  entertained 
by  the  oligarchs  towards  the  democracy,  Alcibiades  began  to  in- 
trigue with  the  leading  Athenians  at  Samos.  He  represented  to 
them  that  if  they  would  change  the  government  of  their  city  to  an 
oligarchical  form,  he  would  be  able  to  bring  the  Persians  over  to 
the  side  of  Athens  ;  but  neither  he  nor  the  Great  King  could  have 
anything  to  do  with  a  "  villanous  democracy."  Many  were  won 
over  to  the  side  of  the  conspirators.  From  the  camp  at  Samos 
the  conspiracy  spread  to  Athens.  The  same  arguments  that  had 
been  used  at  Samos  were  plied  with  the  people  here  :  By  changing 
their  constitution,  they  would  get  back  Alcibiades,  make  Tissa- 
phernes a  friend,  get  unhmited  supplies  of  Persian  gold,  and  be  en- 
abled to  overcome  the  Lacedaemonians.  Surely  all  this  was  worth 
a  little  sacrifice  of  sentiment  respecting  government  by  the  people. 
And  then,  what  else  could  Athens  do  ?  Could  anybody  suggest  a 
better  course  under  the  circumstances  ? 

The  conspiracy  was  ripened  in  the  oligarchical  clubs  at  Athens, 
and  the  plot  was  consummated  by  means  of  a  system  of  terrorism. 
All  opposition  was  silenced  by  assassination.  Under  the  impulsion 
of  terror,  the  public  assembly  was  led  to  vote  away  the  democrati- 
cal  constitution  and  to  set  up  an  oligarchical  one  in  its  stead.     All 


THE  RECALL    OF  ALCLBLADES.  383 

civil  magistracies  were  abolished,  and  a  Council  of  Four  Hundred 
was  formed,  in  whose  hands  was  the  direction  of  all  public  affairs. 
These  councillors  were,  indeed,  when  they  thought  occasion  re- 
quired, to  call  an  assembly  of  five  thousand  of  the  better-to-do  citi- 
zens—  such  as  could  furnish  their  own  arms.  But  there  was  no 
list  of  such  citizens  pubhshed,  and  the  provision  meant  nothing. 
The  government  was  in  the  hands  of  the  four  hundred  oligarchs, 
whose  power  was  unlimited. 

Before  the  conspiracy  had  been  carried  to  this  point,  Alcibiades 
had  broken  with  the  oligarchs.  Indeed,  we  cannot  suppose  that 
any  of  his  representations  to  them  were  sincere.  His  aim  was  to 
get  things  in  a  tangle  at  Athens  so  that  he  should  be  needed  to 
straighten  them  out.  But  before  they  found  out  that  Alcibiades 
was  trifling  with  them,  the  oligarchs  had  gone  too  far  to  retrace 
their  steps,  and  so  had  carried  through  the  plot  in  the  violent  way 
we  have  seen. 

The  Recall  of  Alcibiades  and  the  Fall  of  the  Four  Hundred 
(41 1  B.C.).  —  With  the  conspiracy  consummated  in  Athens,  en- 
voys, headed  by  the  general  Peisander,  who  had  taken  a  prominent 
part  in  bringing  about  the  revolution  in  the  city,  were  sent  to 
Samos  to  win  the  army  to  the  cause.  But  the  army  would  have 
none  of  it.  They  refused  to  recognize  the  new  government. 
They  gathered  in  a  regular  assembly,  declared  themselves  to  be  the 
true  Athens,  took  an  oath  to  maintain  the  democracy,  deposed 
such  of  their  officers  as  they  suspected  of  being  concerned  in  the 
plot,  elected  two  new  leaders,  Thrasybulus  and  Thrasyllus,  and 
then,  upon  the  proposal  of  these  generals,  sent  for  Alcibiades  to 
come  to  them. 

This  invitation  was  what  Alcibiades  had  been  scheming  and 
waiting  for.  He  came  to  Samos,  and  after  four  years'  exile  stood 
once  more  among  his  fellow-countrymen.  It  was  a  favorable  mo- 
ment for  reconciUation,  for  those  around  him  were  like  himself  exiles. 
He  made  a  speech  to  the  army,  in  which  he  lamented  his  hard 
fortune  and  his  unjust  banishment,  and  represented  in  glowing 
colors  what  he  could  do  for  the  Athenians  —  were  he  given  the 


384  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO   FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

opportunity  —  through  making  Tissaphernes  and  the  Great  King 
their  friends.  The  soldiers  were  completely  won  over  by  the 
words  of  Alcibiades,  and  forgetting  and  forgiving  the  past,  voted 
his  recall,  and  gave  him  the  command  of  the  army  with  absolute 
power  (411  B.C.)  ;  thereby  well  illustrating  what  the  poet  Aristoph- 
anes said  respecting  the  disposition  of  the  Athenians  towards  the 
spoiled  favorite,  —  "They  love,  they  hate,  but  cannot  live  with- 
out him." 

The  army  now  demanded  to  be  led  at  once  against  the  oligarchs 
in  Athens ;  but  Alcibiades  dissuaded  the  soldiers  from  this  move- 
ment by  representing  to  them  that  to  leave  Samos  would  be  to 
allow  all  Ionia  and  the  ^gean  islands  to  fall  into  the  hands  of 
the  Peloponnesians.  Thucydides  thinks  that  Alcibiades .  in  this 
matter  rendered  Athens  a  great  service.  * 

To  the  envoys  of  the  P'our  Hundred  who  came  to  Samos, 
Alcibiades  said  that  some  of  the  reforms  they  had  effected  were 
well  enough,  but  that  the  new  council  must  be  abolished.  This 
message  sowed  discord,  as  Alcibiades  knew  it  would,  in  the  ranks 
of  the  ohgarchical  party ;  for  a  reaction  was  already  setting  in  at 
Athens.  The  issue  was  that  the  Four  Hundred  were  deposed 
without  the  intervention  of  the  army,  the  people  themselves,  who 
had  become  suspicious,  and  not  without  cause,  that  the  oligarchy 
were  plotting  to  deliver  the  city  into  the  hands  of  the  Pelopon- 
nesians, rising  against  the  new  government  and  overthrowing  it. 
Some  of  the  leaders  of  the  revolution  escaped  to  Decelea ;  others 
were  arrested,  tried,  and  executed. 

In  the  re-establishment  of  the  democracy,  not  all  the  changes 
that  had  been  effected  in  the  constitution  by  the  oligarchy  were  dis- 
turbed. Thus  the  arrangements  respecting  the  public  assembly 
were  allowed  to  stand.  The  number  remained  nominally  and  for 
a  while  (until  410  B.C.)  at  five  thousand,  and  embraced  only  those 

1  Thucyd.  viii.  86.  Not  only  were  the  cities  of  Ionia  and  of  the  ^gean  held 
for  the  empire,  but  probably  a  terrible  massacre  at  Athens  was  averted ;  since  for 
the  soldiers  to  have  gone  to  the  capital  in  the  mood  in  which  they  then  were,  meant 
almost  certainly  the  filling  of  the  streets  of  the  city  with  the  victims  of  party  hatred 
and  civil  war. 


THE   LOSS    TO  ATHENS   OF  EUBCEA.  385 

able  to  furnish  themselves  with  arms.  Neither  were  the  salaries 
of  civil  magistrates,  which  had  been  abolished,  restored.  Thus 
the  revolution  resulted  in  the  changing  for  a  time  of  the  extreme 
into  a  moderate  democracy.  "  This  government,  during  its  early 
day,"  says  Thucydides,  "  was  the  best  which  the  Athenians  ever 
enjoyed  within  my  memory.  Oligarchy  and  democracy  were  duly 
attempered."  ^ 

The  government  at  home  now  passed  a  vote  of  reconciliation 
with  Alcibiades  and  his  army,  and  once  more  the  Athenians,  with- 
out visible  schism,  stood  united  against  their  outer  foes. 

The  Loss  to  Athens  of  Euboea.  —  Besides  the  other  evils  which 
the  usurpation  of  the  Four  Hundred  had  inflicted  upon  Athens 
was  the  loss  of  Euboea ;  for,  taking  advantage  of  the  revolution  in 
the  capital,  the  Peloponnesian  fleet  had  made  a  descent  upon  this 
island,  destroyed  an  Athenian  squadron  of  thirty-six  triremes  which 
had  hurried  out  from  the  Peiraeus  in  its  defense,  and  raised  all  the 
Euboean  cities  ^  in  successful  revolt  against  Athens. 

The  defection  of  Euboea  was  a  severe  loss  to  Athens,  as  since 
the  Peloponnesians  had  held  possession  of  Decelea  the  Athenians 
had  made  the  island  a  sort  of  storage-place  for  their  cattle, 
slaves,  goods,  and  general  supplies.  Consequently  the  news  of 
the  loss  of  the  island,  coming  as  it  did  at  the  moment  when  the 
army  at  Samos  was  in  revolt  and  Athens  itself  in  the  hands  of  La- 
conizing  oligarchs,  struck  the  Athenians  with  dismay.  They  feared 
that  the  Peloponnesians  would  at  once,  before  measures  of  defense 
could  be  concerted,  make  an  attack  upon  the  Peirseus,  now  bare  of 
ships,  and  at  a  blow  bring  all  to  an  end.  But  the  Spartans,  slow 
and  timid  as  usual,  let  the  opportunity  shp,  thus  once  more  proving 
themselves,  in  the  phrase  of  Thucydides,  "  the  most  convenient 
enemies  whom  the  Athenians  could  possibly  have  had." 

Transference  of  the  Seat  of  War  from  Ionia  to  the  Hellespont. 
—  The  same  year  that  witnessed  the  overthrow  of  the  Four  Hun- 
dred at  Athens  saw  the  transference  of  the  war  from  the  Ionian 

1  viii.  97. 

2  Save  Oreos  (Histiaea),  an  Athenian  cleruchy. 


386  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO  FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

coast  to  the  shores  of  the  Hellespont.  The  growing  distrust  of 
Tissaphernes  which  the  Peloponnesians  entertained,  ripened  into 
a  full  conviction  of  his  insincerity  and  untrustworthiness  as  an 
ally,  and  they  resolved  to  waste  no  more  time  waiting  for  his  ever- 
renewed  promises  to  bring  up  the  Phoenician  fleet  for  the  rein- 
forcement of  their  armament,  but  to  turn  to  Pharnabazus,  the  satrap 
of  the  Hellespont,  accept  the  proposals  of  alhance  which  he  had 
been  holding  out  (p.  378),  and  work  with  him  in  destroying  the 
Athenian  power  in  the  north.  This  change  of  policy  having  been 
decided  upon,  the  Peloponnesian  squadron  was  gradually  mustered 
in  the  Hellespont,  and  before  mid-summer  the  cities  of  Abydos, 
Lampsacus,  and  Byzantium  w^re  in  the  hands  of  the  Peloponne- 
sians. Thus  all  the  possessions  of  the  Athenians  both  on  the 
Propontis  and  the  Hellespont  were  threatened,  and  their  con- 
nection with  the  Euxine,  now  doubly  important  since  the  loss  of 
Eubcea,  was  endangered. 

The  Athenians,  under  their  generals  Thrasybulus  and  Thrasyllus, 
follo\ved  the  Peloponnesian  ships,  and  near  Abydos,  having  drawn 
them  into  a  fight,  inflicted  upon  them  an  overwhelming  defeat.^ 
This  was  the  first  important  victory  that  the  Athenians  had  won 
since  the  Sicilian  disaster,  and  it  filled  Athens  with  great  joy.  Once 
more  the  Athenians  were  on  the  heights,  and  they  saw  the  horizons 
that  had  so  long  been  dark  clearing,  and  the  former  splendor  and 
greatness  of  their  city  restored.^ 

Alcibiades  as  a  General  (411-408  b.c).  —  During  a  period  of 
about  four  years  following  the  great  victory  of  the  Athenians  off" 
Abydos,  events  gathered  about  the  person  of  Alcibiades,  who 
during  this  time  rendered  Athens  splendid  service  as  a  general. 

After  the  sea-fight  at  Abydos,  both  fleets  remained  inactive  for 
some  months,  and  then  the  Peloponnesian  general  Mindarus, 
having  received  reinforcements,  again  offered  the  Athenians  battle. 

1  Battle  of  Abydos  or  of  Cynossema,  411  B.C. 

2  Just  after  the  battle  of  Cynossema  the  history  of  Thucydides  breaks  off 
abruptly  in  the  twenty-first  year  of  the  war.  Our  chief  guide  from  this  on  to  the 
end  of  the  war  is  the  Hellenica  of  Xenophon. 


ALCIBIADES'   RETURN   TO  ATHENS.  387 

The  fight  lasted  throughout  an  entire  day/  and  the  victory  was 
already  declaring  itself  for  the  Peloponnesians,  when  Alcibiades, 
who  had  been  cruising  in  the  Southern  ^gean,  suddenly  appeared, 
and  turned  the  battle  in  favor  of  the  Athenians.  Thus  did  fortune 
seem  to  prearrange  things  for  the  first  appearance  of  her  favorite 
upon  the  theatre  of  the  war  in  a  dramatic  and  impressive  manner. 
All  the  credit  of  the  victory  was  given  to  him,  and  he  became  once 
more  the  popular  hero  at  Athens. 

Fortune  for  a  time  smiled  upon  him.  The  following  year,  at  the 
head  of  a  fleet  of  eighty-six  ships,  he  gained  a  splendid  victory 
over  the  united  fleets  of  the  Peloponnesians  and  the  Syracusans  at 
Cyzicus  (410  B.C.).  The  Athenians  captured  thirty-six  ships,  took 
many  prisoners,  and  a  vast  booty.  The  Syracusans  had  been 
driven  to  burn  their  ships  themselves,  to  prevent  their  capture 
by  the  enemy. 

Other  successes  followed,  and  before  the  end  of  the  year  408 
B.C.  Alcibiades  had  captured  Byzantium,  and  restored  to  Athens 
control  of  all  the  shores  of  the  Hellespont  and  the  Propontis. 
Her  pathway  to  the  Euxine  was  once  more  open. 

Alcibiades'  Return  to  Athens  (408  b.c).  —  The  moment  for 
Alcibiades'  return  to  Athens  was  now  come;  for  before  this  he 
had  not  dared  to  trust  himself  among  his  fellow-citizens  at  home. 
But  now,  crowned  with  victories,  and  recognized  as  the  savior  of 
his  country,  he  deemed  it  safe  to  gratify  his  longing  to  look  once 
again  upon  his  native  city. 

Surrounded  by^the  ships  of  his  victorious  fleet,  which  were 
loaded  with  booty,  decked  with  trophies,  and  retarded  in  move- 
ment by  the  captured  vessels  they  had  in  tow,  Alcibiades  entered 
the  Peiraeus.  Yet  even  at  this  moment  he  had  doubts  as  to  the 
reception  that  would  be  accorded  him,  and  did  not  leave  his  ship 
until  he  saw  a  group  of  relatives  and  friends  ready  to  greet  him. 
But  he  need  not  have  felt  any  distrust.  He  was  received  by  the 
people  with  the  most  extravagant  demonstrations  of  joy  and 
admiration.  He  was  crowned  with  flowers,  and  by  public  decree 
1  The  so-called  second  sea-fight  at  Abydos  (411  B.C.). 


388  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO   FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

the  curses  that  had  been  pronounced  upon  him  were  annulled,  his 
property  which  had  been  confiscated  was  given  back,  and  he  was 
made  sole  commander  of  the  fleet  and  army  with  unhmited 
authority. 

Before  setting  out  upon  a  new  campaign,  Alcibiades  took  part 
in  a  significant  celebration  of  the  Eleusinian  Mysteries  (p.  44). 
For  seven  years,  ever  since  the  occupation  of  Decelea  by  the 
Peloponnesians,  the  annual  procession  from  Athens  to  Eleusis  had 
been  made  by  sea,  and  hence  had  been  robbed  of  many  of  its 
most  attractive  features.  Alcibiades  resolved  to  lead  the  proces- 
sion by  the  usual  festival  road.  Doubtless  his  chief  object  in  this 
was  to  give  a  practical  refutation  to  the  charges  that  had  been 
brought  against  him  in  regard  to  his  profanation  of  the  Mysteries 
(p.  343),  and  to  reinstate  himself  in  the  favor  of  the  priests  of 
Eleusis.  Accordingly  the  road  was  carefully  guarded,  as  an  attack 
upon  the  procession  by  the  Peloponnesians  from  Decelea  was 
feared,  and  the  solemn  procession  was  escorted  in  greater  than 
usual  magnificence  along  the  sacred  way.  No  unfortunate  occur- 
rence marred  the  celebration,  and  Alcibiades  was,  through  the 
success  of  the  festival,  raised  still  higher  in  the  popular  estimation. 

Alcibiades  suffers  Defeat  and  is  deposed  from  his  Command 
(407  B.C.)  —  But  it  was  a  very  precarious  pre-eminence  that 
Alcibiades  was  for  the  moment  enjoying.  The  past  had  indeed 
been  formally  forgiven ;  but,  after  all,  that  past  could  neither 
be  obliterated  nor  forgotten.  The  slightest  untoward  circum- 
stance might  call  it  all  up  afresh,  reawaken  the  old  distrust, 
lend  new  countenance  to  the  enemies  of  Alcibiades,  and  give 
a  wholly  different  set  to  the  current  that  was  just  now  running 
so  strongly  in  his  favor. 

Even  had  Alcibiades  not  misconducted  himself,  things  were 
now  assuming  on  the  side  of  the  enemy  a  shape  which  threatened 
to  bring  to  an  end  his  remarkable  run  of  fortune.  Just  at  this 
time  the  shifty  satrap  Tissaphernes,  whose  double-dealing  was 
ruining  the  cause  of  the  Great  King,  was  superseded  by  Cyrus, 
a  son  of  the  reigning  monarch  Darius  II.  ]  and  at  the  same  time 


ALCIBIADES   SUFFERS  DEFEAT.  389 

the  Spartan  forces  were  placed  under  the  command  of  a  new 
admiral,  named  Lysander,  a  general  of  pre-eminent  ability.  The 
new  Persian  satrap  and  the  new  Spartan  general  worked  together 
zealously  for  the  vigorous  prosecution  of  the  war  against  Athens, 
Cyrus  assuring  Lysander  that  what  money  vvas  needed  for  man- 
ning the  Peloponnesian  ships  should  be  forthcoming  even  if  he 
had  to  break  up  and  coin  into  money  the  gold  and  silver  throne 
on  which  he  sat.^ 

The  new  energy  thus  infused  into  the  war  on  the  side  of  the 
Persians  and  their  Peloponnesian  allies,  boded  ill  in  any  event 
for  the  Athenian  cause.  But  the  prosperous  course  of  Alcibiades 
was  interrupted  not  so  much  by  this  enhancement  of  the  effective 
force  of  the  enemy  against  whom  he  contended,  as  by  his  own 
imprudence  and  folly.  He  directed  the  fleet  with  which  he  had 
been  entrusted  against  the  revolted  islands  of  the  ^gean.  After 
an  attack  upon  the  island  of  i\ndros,  which  he  failed  to  reduce 
to  submission,  he  himself  sailed  for  the  Ionian  coast  for  the 
ill-advised  purpose  of  raising  forced  contributions  from  the  sub- 
ject alHes  of  Athens  there,  leaving  meantime  the  command  of 
the  main  fleet,  now  stationed  at  Samos,  in  the  hands  of  one 
of  his  incapable  favorites,  Antiochus  by  -name.  His  instructions 
to  him  upon  his  departure  had  been  not  to  risk  a  batde  with  the 
enemy  under  any  circumstances;  but  Antiochus  disobeyed  his 
orders,  drew  the  Spartan  general  Lysander  into  an  engagement 
in  front  of  Ephesus  (battle  of  Notium  407  b.c),  and  suffered 
a  serious  defeat. 

This  affair  served  for  the  final  undoing  of  Alcibiades.  His 
enemies  violently  accused  him  before  the  people  at  Athens 
of  a  traitorous  abuse  of  the  authority  with  which  they  had 
generously  invested  him,  and  of  general  misconduct.  All  the 
old  feelings  of  mistrust  were  reawakened,  and  the  people,  now 
furious  in  their  anger  against  the  favorite  of  the  hour  before, 
deposed  him  from  his  command.  Ten  new  generals,  of  whom 
Conon  was  chief,  were  elected  to  take  his  place. 

1  Plut.  Lysander,  9. 


390  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO  FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

Alcibiades  now  withdrew  to  the  Thracian  Chersonese,  where 
he  had  a  castle  or  fortress  well  stored  with  treasure,  and  engaged 
in  private  war  against  the  neighboring  hostile  tribes  of  Thrace.^ 

The  Battle  of  Arginusse  (406  b.c.)  :  the  Condemnation  of  the 
Athenian  Generals.  —  The  most  important  engagement  of  the 
following  year  was  the  great  sea-fight  between  the  Peloponnesian 
fleet  of  a  hundred  and  twenty  ships  under  Callicratidas,  and  the 
Athenian  fleet  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  vessels  under  Conon,  at  the 
islets  of  Arginusae,  which  He  between  Lesbos  and  the  Asian  shore. 
The  Athenians  were  victorious,  but  they  lost  twenty-five  ships 
with  the  greater  part  of  their  crews.  The  Peloponnesians  lost 
about  seventy  vessels,  and  their  commander,  Callicratidas,  who 
in  the  meMe  was  knocked  from  his  galley  and  drowned. 

The  splendid  victory  was  marred  by  a  great  misfortune  and  a 
great  crime.  After  the  battle  forty-seven  of  the  Athenian  ships 
had  been  detailed  to  rescue  the  crews  of  the  wrecked  galleys, 
while  the  remainder  pursued  the  fleeing  enemy.  A  severe  storm 
arising,  the  rescuing  party  was  unable  to  reach  the  wrecks,  and 
the  crews  perished.  Although  no  one  seems  to  have  been  to 
blame,  at  least  criminally  to  blame,  for  the  misfortune,  still  the 
assembly  at  Athens,  at  the  instigation  of  a  certain  senator,  Callix- 
enus  by  name,  by  a  hurried  and  illegal  vote,  notwithstanding  the 
protest  of  the  philosopher  Socrates,  who  happened  at  the  time  to 
be  one  of  the  presiding  officers  (Prytanes)  of  the  Ecclesia,  con- 
demned eight  of  the  generals  in  command  of  the  fleet  to  death, 
and  carried  the  decree  into  effect  as  to  the  six  who  were  present 
in  the  city.  Among  the  generals  executed  was  Pericles,  the  son 
of  Pericles  the  great  statesman. 

This  action  of  the  Athenians  was  another  of  the  crimes  of  the 
democracy,  and  one  of  which  the  people  afterwards  bitterly  re- 
pented. They  are  said  to  have  followed  with  their  special  resent- 
ment the  accuser  of  the  generals,  Callixenus,  who,  hated  and 
shunned  by  all,  finally  died  a  miserable  outcast. 

1  Some  years  later  he  was  killed  in  Asia  Minor,  one  account  says  by  political, 
but  another  by  personal,  enemies  C404  B.C.). 


CAPTURE    OF  THE  ATHENIAN  FLEET.  391 

Capture  of  the  Athenian  Fleet  by  Lysander  at  iEgospotami 

(405  B.C. ) .  —  The  year  following  the  condemnation  of  the  Athenian 
generals  the  war  was  virtually  ended  by  the  surprise  and  capture 
of  the  Athenian  fleet  at  -^gospotami,  the  Goat's  River,  on  the 
Hellespont,  by  the  Spartan  general  Lysander. 

This  overwhelming  misfortune  to  Athens  was  the  result  of  the 
most  shameful  incapacity  and  neglect  of  duty,  if  not  of  downright 
treachery,  on  the  part  of  the  Athenian  generals.  The  situation  of 
the  hostile  fleets  just  before  the  capture  was  this.  The  Athenian 
fleet,  comprising  a  hundred  and  eighty  ships,  lay  about  two  miles 
from  Sestus,  while  the  Peloponnesian  squadron,  somewhat  smaller 
than  the  Athenian,  lay  opposite  it  at  Lampsacus.  The  width  of 
the  channel  between  the  fleets  was  not  quite  two  miles.  The 
Athenians  got  their  food  supplies  at  Sestus,  almost  all  of  the  sol- 
diers going  thither  together  for  their  meals,  leaving  their  ships 
meanwhile  on  the  beach. 

Now  the  castle  of  Alcibiades  (p.  390)  was  in  this  very  neigh- 
borhood, and  he,  perceiving  the  exposed  situation  of  the  Athenian 
fleet,  warned  the  generals  of  the  danger  they  were  incurring ;  but 
his  admonition  was  insolently  rejected. 

Lysander,  watching  his  opportunity  when  the  Athenians  were 
away  at  Sestus  for  their  evening  meal,  made  one  day  a  dash  across 
the  narrow  strait,  and  captured,  almost  without  a  blow  being 
struck,  a  hundred  and  seventy  of  the  Athenian  ships  lying  on  the 
shore.  Only  eight  or  ten  galleys,  which  were  wholly  or  partly 
manned,  escaped. 

The  crews  ashore  taking  their  evening  meal  must  have  amounted 
to  not  less  than  thirty-six  thousand  men.  An  unknown  number  of 
these  were  made  prisoners.  "Never,"  says  Grote,  "was  victory 
more  complete,  or  more  thoroughly  disgraceful  to  the  defeated 
generals,  taken  collectively,  than  that  of  ^gospotami."  It  is  not 
impossible,  as  has  already  been  intimated,  that  there  was  treachery 
in  the  Athenian  camp  ;  but  if  there  was,  it  never  came  to  light. 

All  of  the  prisoners  save  the  native  Athenians  were  released ; 
these  were  led  out  and,  to  the  number  of  four  thousand  it  is  said, 


392  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO  FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

put  to  death,  the  usual  rites  of  burial  being  denied  their  bodies. 
The  excuse  offered  for  this  massacre  was  that  the  Athenians  had 
thrown  some  prisoners  from  a  precipice,  and  also  that  they  had 
determined  to  cut  off  the  right  hand  of  all  the  prisoners  they  might 
make.  Probably  there  was  no  truth  in  these  accusations,  but  they 
served  as  a  pretext  for  the  barbarous  act. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  here  that  the  Greeks  had  advanced  beyond 
that  state  of  barbarism  in  war  where  the  life  of  the  prisoner  is 
taken  merely  for  the  sake  of  taking  it,  and  had  begun  to  recognize 
the  right  of  the  vanquished  at  least  to  life,  —  though  not  to 
liberty,  —  unless  this  right  had  been  forfeited  by  some  special  act 
of  treachery,  cruelty,  or  disregard  of  the  generally  recognized  laws 
of  war. 

The  Fall  of  Athens  (404  b.c). — Among  the  few  Athenian 
vessels  that  escaped  capture  at  the  hands  of  Lysander  was  the 
state-ship  Paralus,  which  hastened  to  Athens  with  the  tidings  of 
the  terrible  misfortune.  It  arrived  in  the  night-time,  and  from 
the  Peiraeus  the  awful  news,  published  by  a  despairing  wail,  spread 
up  the  Long  Walls  into  the  upper  city.  "That  night,"  says 
Xenophon,  "  no  one  slept."  ^  All  knew  that  the  fate  of  Athens 
was  sealed. 

Notwithstanding  the  hopelessness  of  the  situation,  the  Athenians, 
hushing  their  quarrels,  began  forthwith  to  put  the  city  in  prepara- 
tion for  a  siege,  thinking  to  be  able  at  least  to  delay  fate  a  little. 
The  victorious  Lysander,  after  having  received  the  surrender  of 
Byzantium  and  Chalcedon,  moved  southward,  proclaiming  free- 
dom to  the  subjects  of  Athens  on  the  way,  and  revolutionizing 
the  governments  in  all  the  cities  in  the  interest  of  Sparta  and  the 
oligarchical  party.  All  the  Athenian  settlers  or  cleruchs  in  Lesbos 
and  Euboea  and  other  islands  were  dispossessed  of  their  homes  and 
lands  and  ordered  to  go  to  Athens,  Lysander's  idea  being  that 
the  more  people  he  drove  within  the  walls  of  the  city  the  more 
quickly  he  should  be  able  to  starve  it  into  surrender.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  exile  ^ginetans,  Melians,  and  others,  who  had  been 
1  Xenoph.  Hellen.  ii.  2,  3-4. 


THE   FALL    OF  ATHENS.  393 

driven  from  their  cities  by  the  Athenians,  were  gathered  and  re- 
stored to  their  old  homes. 

While  Lysander  was  still  thus  busied  in  the  ^gean,  he  sent 
word  to  King  Agis  at  Decelea  and  to  Sparta  of  his  progress 
towards  Athens.  Straightway  all  the  Peloponnesians,  says  Xeno- 
phon,  save  the  Argives,  turned  out  in  a  body  under  the  Spartan 
king  Pausanias,  and  hurried  across  the  Isthmus  to  Athens,  eager 
to  share  in  the  glory  of  the  capture  of  the  Tyrant- city.  At  the 
same  time  King  Agis  marched  down  with  the  troops  that  formed 
the  garrison  at  Decelea,  and  the  united  forces  encamped  before 
the  gates  of  Athens  in  the  gardens  of  the  Academy.  Lysander 
came  up  to  the  Peiraeus  with  a  hundred  and  fifty  ships  and  shut 
the  city  in  by  way  of  the  sea. 

The  Athenians,  hemmed  in  now  on  every  side,  were,  after 
several  months'  resistance,  forced  by  famine  to  seek  terms  of 
surrender.  The  Spartans  called  a  council  of  their  allies  to  decide 
respecting  their  fate.  The  Thebans,  Corinthians,  and  others  in- 
sisted upon  the  total  destruction  of  Athens,  and  the  sale  of  the 
inhabitants  into  slavery.  The  Spartans,  however,  withstood  these 
extreme  measures,  declaring  with  apparent  magnanimity  that  they 
would  never  consent  thus  "  to  put  out  one  of  the  eyes  of  Greece," 
strengthening  the  argument  of  the  metaphor  by  urging  in  behalf 
of  Athens  the  great  service  she  had  rendered  Hellas  in  the  struggle 
with  the  barbarians.  The  real  motive,  doubtless,  of  the  Spartans 
in  sparing  the  city  was  their  fear  lest,  with  Athens  blotted  out, 
Thebes  or  Corinth  should  become  too  powerful,  and  the  hegemony 
of  Sparta  be  thereby  endangered. 

The  final  resolve  of  the  conference  was  that  the  lives  of  the 
Athenians  should  be  spared,  but  that  they  should  be  required  to 
demoHsh  their  I>ong  Walls  and  those  of  the  Peirseus,  to  give  up 
all  their  ships  save  twelve,  to  allow  their  exiles  to  return,  and  to 
bind  themselves  to  do  Sparta's  bidding  both  by  sea  and  by  land. 

The  Athenians  were  forced  to  surrender  on  these  hard  and 
humiliating  conditions.  Straightway  the  victors  dismantled  the 
harbor  at  Peiraeus,  burning  the  unfinished  ships  on  the  docks,  and 


394-  SICILIAN  DISASTER    TO   FALL    OF  ATHENS. 

then  began  the  demoHtion  of  the  Long  Walls  and  the  fortifi- 
cations, the  work  going  on  to  the  accompaniment  of  festive  music 
and  dancing;  for  the  Peloponnesians,  says  Xenophon,  looked 
upon  that  day  as  the  beginning  of  Hberty  for  the  Hellenes.^ 

The  long  war  was  now  over.  The  dominion  of  the  imperial 
city  of  Athens  was  at  an  end  —  and  the  great  days  of  Greece 
were  past. 

The  Results  of  the  War.  —  "Never,"  says  Thucydides,  com- 
menting upon  the  lamentable  results  of  the  Peloponnesian  War, 
"  never  were  so  many  cities  captured  and  depopulated.  .  .  Never 
were  exile  and  slaughter  more  frequent,  whether  in  the  war  or 
brought  about  by  civil  strife."  -  Greece  never  recovered  from  the 
blow  which  had  destroyed  so  large  a  part  of  her  population. 

Athens  was  merely  the  wreck  of  her  former  self.  The  harbor 
of  Peirseus,  once  crowded  with  the  ships  of  the  imperial  city, 
was  now  empty.  The  population  of  the  capital  had  been  terribly 
thinned.  Things  were  just  the  reverse  now  of  what  they  were 
at  the  time  of  the  Persian  invasion,  when,  with  Athens  in  ruins, 
Themistocles  at  Salamis,  taunted  with  being  a  man  without  a  city, 
could  truthfully  declare  that  Athens  was  there  on  the  sea  (p.  199). 
Now  the  real  Athens  was  gone  :  only  the  empty  shell  remained. 
And  with  her  was  gone  every  good  hope  of  the  Greek  cities'  ever 
being  gathered  into  a  nation,  and  an  end  thereby  placed  to  their 
never-ceasing  contentions  and  wars. 

Not  Athens  alone,  but  all  Hellas,  bore  the  marks*  of  the  cruel 
war.  Sites  once  covered  with  pleasant  villages  or  flourishing 
towns  were  now  pasture  land.  But  more  lamentable  than  all  else 
was  the  effect  of  the  war  upon  the  intellectual  and  moral 
hfe  of  the  Greek  race.  The  Grecian  world  had  sunk  many 
degrees  in  morality ;  while  the  vigor  and  productiveness  of  the 
intellectual  and  artistic  life  of  Hellas,  the  centre  and  home  of 
which  had  been  Athens,  were  impaired  beyond  recovery.  The 
achievements  of  the  Greek  intellect,  especially  in  the  fields  of 

1  Xenoph.  Hellen.  ii.  2,  23. 

2  i.  23. 


THE  RESULTS   OF  THE   WAR.  395 

philosophic  thought,  in  the  century  following  the  war,  were,  it  is 
true,  wonderful ;  but  these  triumphs  merely  show,  we  may  believe, 
what  the  Hellenic  mind  would  have  done  for  art  and  general  cult- 
ure, had  it  been  permitted,  unchecked,  and  under  the  favoring 
and  inspiring  conditions  of  liberty  and  self-government,  to  disclose 
all  that  was  latent  in  it. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Life  of  Alcibiades.  Jowett's  Thucydides,  viii. 
Breaks  off  abruptly  in  the  twenty-first  year  of  the  war  (411  B.C.).  Xenophon, 
Hellenica,  bk.  i.;  also  bk.  ii.  chs.  I  and  2.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece^  vol.  iii. 
pp.  414-586.  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  vi.  pp.  185- 
451;    (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  vii.  pp.  353-402;   ib.  vol.  viii.  pp.  1-231. 


396  THE   SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 


Part    Fifth. 

FROM    THE    END    OF    THE    PELOPONNESIAN 

WAR    TO    THE   CONQUEST  OF  GREECE 

BY   THE  ROMANS. 

(404-146   B.C.) 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

THE   SPARTAN    HEGEMONY 

(404-371    B.C.) 

The  Character  of  the  Period.  —  Throughout  the  Peloponnesian 
War  Sparta  had  maintained  that  her  only  purpose  in  warring 
against  Athens  was  to  regain  for  the  Grecian  cities  the  Hberty 
of  which  Athens  had  deprived  them.  But  no  sooner  was  the 
power  of  Athens  broken  than  Sparta  herself  began  to  play  the 
tyrant,  and  set  up  in  Greece  a  despotism  far  more  unendurable 
than  that  which  Athens  had  ever  maintained. 

The  cities  freed  from  the  rule  of  Athens,  instead  of  being  left 
free  to  manage  their  own  affairs,  were  at  once  made  the  subjects 
of  Sparta.  Their  democratic  governments  were  overthrown  and 
authority  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  oligarchical  councils  or 
bands,  generally  composed  of  ten  persons,  and  hence  known 
as  decarchies,  whose  tyranny  was  supported  by  Lacedaemonian 


THE    THIRTY    TYRANTS  AT  ATHENS.  397 

garrisons.  Further,  Spartan  governors,  called  harmosts,  officers 
who  exercised  the  arbitrary  authority  of  Persian  satraps,  were  sent 
to  the  different  cities.  The  experience  of  Athens  under  the  rule 
of  the  board  of  oligarchs  into  whose  hands  Lysander  delivered 
the  city  may  be  taken  as  typical  of  the  experiences  of  the  other 
cities  whose  affairs  the  Spartans  regulated  in  like  manner. 

The  Thirty  Tyrants  at  Athens  (404-403  b.c).  —  One  of  the 
conditions  exacted  by  Lysander  of  the  Athenians  upon  their 
surrender  was  that  they  should  allow  the  return  of  the  oligarchical 
exiles.  This  measure  was  intended  by  Lysander  to  pave  the  way 
for  the  abolition  of  the  democratic  government,  and  it  worked  just 
as  he  had  planned.  Upon  the  return  of  the  ohgarchs,  the  democ- 
racy was  overthrown,  and  in  its  place  was  set  up  an  oligarchical 
government,  administered  by  a  board  of  thirty  persons,  at  the 
head  of  which  was  Critias.  These  men  instituted  such  an  in- 
famous tyranny  that  they  were  known  as  the  Thirty  Tyrants. 
Their  rule  was  a  perfect  reign  of  terror,  and  was  supported  by 
a  Lacedaemonian  garrison  established  on  the  Acropolis.  Not 
only  were  the  pohtical  enemies  of  the  tyrants  murdered,  but 
wealthy  citizens  and  foreign  residents  were  put  to  death  merely 
that  their  riches  might  be  seized  upon.  Hundreds  were  driven 
from  the  city,  and  found  an  asylum  in  the  surrounding  states, 
even  the  Thebans  being  moved  to  sympathy  and  opening  their 
gates  to  the  exiles. 

The  tyranny  was  too  atrocious  to  endure  long.  Among  the 
exiles  was  Thrasybulus,  who  had  found  an  asylum  in  Boeotia. 
Collecting  a  small  band  of  followers,  he  seized  Peirseus,  a  thing 
easy  .to  do,  since  the  place  was  now  without  walls.  Here  he  was 
attacked  by  the  Tyrants.  Thrasybulus  made  a  stand  on  the  hill 
of  Munychia.  The  assaulting  columns  of  the  Thirty  were  driven 
back  with  heavy  loss,  Critias  himself  being  among  the  slain. 

A  little  while  after  this  the  victorious  exiles  took  possession  of 
Athens,  and  brought  to  an  end  the  infamous  rule  of  the  oligarchs. ' 
They  had  held   possession   of  the   government   for   only   a   few 
months,  but  in  that  short  time  are  said  to  have  caused  the  death 


398  THE  SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 

of  more  Athenians  than  the  combined  enemies  of  Athens  had 
destroyed  during  the  last  ten  years  of  the  Peloponnesian  War. 
The  old  democratic  constitution,  somewhat  modified  however,  was 
soon  re-established,  and  the  exiles  were  recalled  (403  B.C.).  The 
memory  of  the  Thirty  Tyrants  was  assigned  to  eternal  execration. 

The  Expedition  of  the  Ten  Thousand  Greeks  (401-400  b.c). 
—  Shortly  after  these  transactions  at  Athens  there  took  place  an 
affair  of  momentous  consequences  in  Asia.  This  was  the  famous 
expedition  of  the  Ten  Thousand  Greeks  through  the  heart  of  the 
dominions  of  the  Great  King.  The  circumstances  of  this  remark- 
able exploit  were  these. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  towards  the  close  of  the  Peloponnesian 
War,  Cyrus,  the  brother  of  the  Persian  king  Artaxerxes  II.,  was 
made  satrap  in  Asia  Minor  in  place  of  Tissaphernes  (p.  388) .  It 
will  also  be  remembered  that  he  had  given  zealous  aid  to  the  Pelo- 
ponnesians  against  Athens.  Now  this  Cyrus,  feeling  that  he  had 
been  unjustly  excluded  from  the  throne  by  his  brother,^  was 
secretly  planning  to  seize  it  for  himself.  The  time  for  such  an 
undertaking  was  opportune.  The  Greek  cities  were  swarming 
with  men  nursed  in  war,  whom  the  end  of  the  struggle  between 
Sparta  and  Athens  had  thrown  out  of  employment,  and  who  were 
eager  to  enter  as  mercenaries  the  service  of  any  one  who  was  able 
to  offer  them  good  pay.  The  superior  qualities  of  the  Greek 
soldiers  Cyrus  well  understood,  and  he  was  anxious  to  enlist  a 
body  of  them  in  his  enterprise.  Consequently  he  sent  deputies 
to  Sparta  to  remind  the  Spartans  of  the  obligation  they  were 
under  to  him  for  the  aid  he  had  rendered  them  in  the  recent  war, 
and  to  ask  their  co-operation  in  his  proposed  undertaking.  The 
appeal  of  Cyrus  was  favorably  considered  by  the  Spartans,  and 
they  gave  orders  to  their  generals  to  aid  him  in  setting  on  foot 
his  expedition. 

1  Cyrus,  though  younger  than  his  brother,  claimed  the  throne  on  the  ground 
that  he  had  been  born  while  his  father  Xerxes  was  actually  king,  whereas  Arta- 
xerxes had  been  born  before  the  accession  of  Xerxes,  and  consequently  while  he 
was  still  a  private  person. 


IMLARCH  OF  THE  TES 


nous  AND  GREEKS. 


■»         »    »  »  ^  .  9 


••       •••»«* 


EXPEDITION  OF  THE    TEN   THOUSAND    GREEKS.       399 

The  army  which  Cyrus  gathered  from  various  quarters  com- 
prised over  a  hundred  thousand  barbarians  and  about  thirteen 
thousand  Greek  mercenaries  under  the  lead  of  the  Spartan  exile 
Clearchus.  With  this  force  —  with  the  exception  of  some  of 
the  Greek  troops  who  joined  the  expedition  a  little  later  — 
Cyrus  set  out  from  Sardis  in  the  spring  of  the  year  401  B.C., 
and  directed  his  course  eastward  across  Asia  Minor.  He  had 
concealed  from  his  soldiers,  and  also  from  all  his  generals  save 
Clearchus,  the  real  object  of  the  expedition.  When  after  many 
days'  journeying  the  Greeks  divined,  from  the  direction  of  their 
march,  that  they  were  being  led  against  the  Great  King,  they 
rebelled  and  refused  to  advance  farther,  but  were  finally  pacified 
and  persuaded  to  go  on  by  their  general  Clearchus. 

The  march  of  the  expedition  through  the  southwestern  passes 
of  Asia  Minor  and  over  the  Mesopotamian  plains  was,  strangely 
enough,  unimpeded  by  the  Persians,  and  Cyrus  had  penetrated  to 
the  very  heart  of  the  Persian  empire,  before,  at  Cunaxa  in  Baby- 
lonia, his  farther  advance  was  disputed  by  Artaxerxes  with  an  army 
numbering,  it  is  said,  eight  hundred  thousand  men.  In  the  battle 
which  here  followed,  the  barbarian  troops  of  Cyrus  were  scattered 
at  the  first  onset  of  the  enemy ;  but  the  splendid  conduct  of  the 
Greeks  won  the  day  for  their  leader.  Cyrus,  however,  exposing 
himself  in  a  rash  attempt  to  cut  his  way  through  the  Persian 
ranks  to  the  spot  where  his  brother  had  stationed  himself,  was 
slain ;  and  a  short  time  after  the  battle  Clearchus  and  the  other 
Grecian  generals,  having  been  persuaded  by  the  satrap  Tissapher- 
nes,  who  pretended  to  be  kindly  disposed  towards  the  Greeks,  to 
attend  a  council,  were  treacherously  seized  and  sent  as  prisoners 
to  Artaxerxes,  by  whom  they  were  put  to  death. 

The  Greeks,  in  a  hurried  night  meeting,  now  chose  new  generals 
to  lead  them  back  to  their  homes.  The  chief  of  these  was  Xeno- 
phon,  the  popular  historian  of  the  expedition.  Under  his  direc- 
tion, the  Greeks  made  one  of  the  most  memorable  retreats  in  all 
history.  They  traversed  the  hot  plains  of  the  Tigris,  and  then,  in 
the  midst  of  the  winter  season,  crossed  the  snowy  passes  of  the 


400  THE   SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 

mountains  of  Armenia,  being  harassed  almost  constantly  by  the 
hostile  natives  of  the  regions  through  which  they  were  marching. 
Finally,  after  almost  incredible  hardships,  the  head  of  the  retreat- 
ing column  reached  the  top  of  a  mountain  ridge  whence  the 
waters  of  the  Euxine  appeared  to  view.  A  great  shout,  "The 
Sea !  the  Sea  !  "  arose  and  spread  back  through  the  column, 
creating  a  tumult  of  joy  among  the  soldiers,  weary  with  their 
seemingly  endless  marching  and  fighting. 

The  Greeks  had  struck  the  sea  at  the  spot  where  stood  the 
Greek  colony  of  Trapezus  (now  Trebizond),  whence  they  finally 
made  their  way,  pardy  by  land  and  partly  by  water,  to  the  Helles- 
pontine  region,  where  we  meet  them  later  fighting  the  battles  of 
Hellas  against  the  Persians. 

The  march  of  the  Ten  Thousand  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  military  exploits  of  antiquity.  Its  historical  signifi- 
cance is  derived  from  the  fact  that  it  paved  the  way  for  the  later 
expedition  of  Alexander  the  Great.  This  it  did  by  revealing  to 
the  Greeks  the  decayed  state  of  the  Persian  empire,  and  showing 
how  feeble  was  the  resistance  which  it  could  offer  to  the  march  of 
an  army  of  disciplined  soldiers.  Thus  the  memorable  retreat 
forms  the  prelude  to  the  still  more  memorable  campaign  of  the 
Macedonian. 

The  Trial  and  the  Death  of  Socrates  (399  b.c).  —  While 
Xenophon  was  yet  away  on  his  expedition,  there  happened  in 
his  native  city  one  of  the  saddest  tragedies  in  history.  This 
was  the  trial  and  condemnation  to  death  by  the  Athenians  of 
their  fellow-citizen  Socrates,  the  greatest  moral  teacher  of  pagan 
antiquity. 

The  double  charge  upon  which  he  was  condemned  was  worded 
as  follows  :  "  Socrates  is  guilty  of  crime,  —  first,  for  not  worship- 
ping the  gods  whom  the  city  worships,  but  in  introducing  new 
divinities  of  his  own ;  next,  for  corrupting  the  youth.  The  pen- 
alty is  death." 

We  are  surprised  that  such  a  man  as  Socrates  should  have  been 
the  object  of  such  a  prosecution  in  tolerant,  free-thinking,  and 


THE    TRIAL  AND    THE   DEATH  OF  SOCRATES.         401 

freedom-loving  Athens.  But  his  prosecutors  were  moved  by  other 
motives  beside  zeal  for  the  national  worship.  Socrates  during  his 
long  life,  —  he  was  now  an  old  man  of  seventy  years,  —  spent 
as  an  uncompromising  teacher  of  truth  and  righteousness,  had 
made  many  personal  enemies.  He  had  exposed  by  his  searching 
questions  the  ignorance  of  many  a  vain  pretender  to  wisdom,  and 
stirred  up  thereby  many  lasting  resentments.  He  had  disturbed 
many  pious  people  by  the  unconventional  way  in  which  he  talked 
about  the  popular  gods.  The  fact  that  Alcibiades  and  Critias 
had  both  been  disciples  of  his  was  used  to  show  the  dangerous  ten- 
dency of  his  teachings.  Socrates  again  had  offended  many  through 
his  opposition  to  the  Athenian  democracy ;  for  he  did  not  always 
approve  the  way  the  Athenians  had  of  doing  things,  and  told  them 
so  plainly.  He  favored,  for  instance,  the  limitation  of  the  fran- 
chise, and  ridiculed  the  Athenian  method  of  selecting  magistrates 
by  the  use  of  the  lot,  as  though  the  lot  could  pick  out  the  men 
best  fitted  to  govern.  But  the  people,  especially  since  the  events 
of  the  year  404  B.C.,  were  very  sensitive  to  all  criticism  of  this 
kind  which  tended  to  discredit  their  cherished  democratic  institu- 
tions. 

The  trial  was  before  a  dicastery  or  citizen  court  (p.  262),  com- 
posed of  over  five  hundred  jurors.  Socrates  made  no  serious 
attempt  to  secure  a  favorable  verdict  from  the  court,  steadily  re- 
fusing to  make  any  unbecoming  appeal  to  his  judges  for  clemency. 
Instead  of  doing  this,  he  embraced  the  opportunity  to  tell  the 
jurors  some  wholesome  truths ;  and  after  he  had  been  pronounced 
guilty,  when  called  upon,  according  to  custom,  to  name  the  penalty 
which  he  would  have  the  court  inflict,^  he  told  the  court  that  he 
thought  he  deserved  to  be  supported  for  the  rest  of  his  life  at 
the  public  expense  at  the  Prytaneum.     He  finally,  however,  yield- 


1  The  way  of  fixing  the  penalty  in  an  Athenian  court  was  this :  the  accuser 
named  a  penalty  (in  this  case  the  prosecutor  had  named  death)  and  then  the  con- 
demned was  at  liberty  to  name^  another.  The  jury  then  chose  between  the  two. 
They  must  impose  one  or  the  other  penalty;  they  were  not  at  liberty  to  choose 
a  third. 


402  THE   SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 

ing  to  the  entreaties  of  his  friends,  proposed  a  penalty  of  thirty 
minae.^  The  dicasts,  irritated  by  the  words  and  manner  of  Socrates, 
pronounced,  by  a  vote  of  two  hundred  and  eighty-one  to  two  hun- 
dred and  seventy-six,  the  penaUy  of  death. 

It  so  happened  that  the  sentence  was  pronounced  just  after  the 
sacred  ship  that  yearly  bore  the  offerings  to  Delos  in  commemora- 
tion of  the  deliverance  of  the  Athenian  youth  from  the  Cretan 
Minotaur  (p.  i8)  had  set  sail  on  its  holy  commission,  and  since  by 
a  law  of  the  city  no  one  could  be  put  to  death  while  it  was  away, 
Socrates  was  led  to  prison,  and  there  remained  for  about  thirty 
days  before  the  execution  of  the  sentence.  This  period  Socrates 
spent  in  serene  converse  with  his  friends  upon  those  lofty  themes 
that  had  occupied  his  thoughts  during  all  his  life.  The  last  con- 
versation of  the  master  with  his  disciples,  upon  the  immortality  of 
the  soul,  has  been  preserved  to  us  in  the  Phcedo  of  Plato  and  the 
Memoi-abilia  of  Xenophon.  When  at  last  the  hour  for  his  de- 
parture had  arrived,  Socrates  bade  his  friends  farewell,  and  then 
calmly  drank  the  cup  of  poison  hemlock. 

The  Spartan  King  Agesilaus  and  the  War  in  Asia  Minor 
against  the  Persians  (399-394  b.c).  —  We  must  now  turn  from 
Athenian  matters  to  view  the  affairs  of  the  Greeks  in  Asia 
Minor. 

Momentous  consequences  naturally  issued  from  the  unsuccess- 
ful attempt  of  Cyrus  to  dethrone  his  brother.  Tissaphernes,  who 
had  won  the  special  gratitude  of  King  Artaxerxes  for  the  great 
service  he.  had  rendered  him  in  the  campaign  against  Cyrus,  was 
now  given,  in  addition  to  his  own  satrapy,  all  those  provinces  over 
which  Cyrus  had  ruled.  He  straightway  made  preparations  to 
chastise  the  Greek  cities  of  the  coast  which,  through  friendship  or 
active  co-operation,  had  aided  Cyrus  in  his  attempt  to  seize  the 
Persian  throne.  These  cities  appealed  to  Sparta  to  defend  them 
against  Persian  vengeance. 

The  Spartans  sent  the  assistance  solicited.  After  the  war  had 
been  maintained  for  some  time,  with  no  very  decisive  results  for 
1  A  mina  was  equivalent  to  about  ^i8  or  ^20. 


THE    CORINTHIAN  WAR.  403 

either  party/  new  vigor  was  infused  into  it  on  the  Spartan  side  by 
the  appearance  upon  the  scene  of  the  Spartan  king  Agesilaus. 
This  man  was  consumed  by  an  ambition  to  emulate  the  exploits 
of  Agamemnon.  He  beUeved,  relying  on  what  the  Ten  Thousand 
Greeks  had  achieved,  that  he  should  be  able  to  march  to  Susa  and 
overthrow  completely  the  Persian  power.  Agesilaus  was  an  able 
commander,  and  inflicted  a  decisive  defeat  upon  Tissaphernes, 
who  was  superseded  in  his  government  by  another,^  and  beheaded. 
The  success  of  Agesilaus  threatened  to  make  an  end  of  the  Persian 
authority  in  Asia  Minor.  Just  at  this  moment  the  ephors  were 
constrained  to  recall  him  to  the  defense  of  Spartan  interests  in 
Greece  proper. 

The  Corinthian  War  (395-387  b.c.  ). —  Unable  to  cope  with  the 
Spartans  in  the  open  field  in  Asia,  the  Great  King,  in  order  to 
secure  their  withdrawal,  had  resorted  to  the  device  of  stirring  up 
trouble  for  them  at  home.  This  it  was  easy  to  do,  for  the 
tyrannical  course  of  Sparta  had  won  for  her  universal  fear  and 
hatred.  The  emissaries  of  Artaxerxes,  by  means  of  persuasions 
and  bribes,  succeeded  in  forming  a  coalition  of  the  chief  states  of 
European  Greece  against  her.  There  now 'began  a  long  and 
tedious  struggle  known  as  the  Corinthian  War  (395-387  B.C.),  in 
which  the  Spartans,  with  the  'few  allies  that  remained  true  to  them, 
contended  against  the  united  forces  of  Corinth,  Athens,  Thebes, 
Argos,  and  other  Greek  states,  together  with  the  troops  and  ships 
of  Persia.^ 

One  of  the  most  important  battles  of  the  war  was  the  naval 

1  The  Spartans  were  at  first  commanded  by  Thimbron.  Displaying  incapacity 
as  a  general,  he  was  soon  superseded  by  Dercyllidas,  who  was  in  turn  superseded 
by  Agesilaus. 

2  Thithraustes. 

3  The  chief  engagements  of  the  war  were  the  following :  the  battle  of  Haliartus, 
in  Boeotia,  (395  B.C.),  in  which  the  Spartan  Lysander  was  killed;  the  battle  of 
Corinth  (394  B.C.),  which  resulted  in  a  victory  for  the  Spartans;  the  sea-fight  of 
Cnidus,  off  the  Carian  coast  (394  B.C.),  in  which  the  Athenian  admiral  Conon 
gained  a  decisive  victory  over  the  Spartan  fleet ;  the  battle  of  Coronea,  in  Boeotia 
(394  B.C.) ,  where  Agesilaus  in  a  stubborn  fight  defeated  the  Thebans  and  their 
allies. 


404  THE   SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 

engagement  off  Cnidus  (394  b.c),  in  Caria,  where  the  Athenian 
fleet  under  Conon,  alHed  with  the  Persian,  ahnost  annihilated  the 
Spartan  fleet  under  Peisander.  This  victory  practically  destroyed 
the  maritime  empire  which  Sparta  had  built  up  since  the  battle 
of  y^gospotami.  It  led  to  a  partial  restoration  of  the  power  of 
Athens,  for  Conon  now  succeeded  in  persuading  the  satrap 
Pharnabazus  to  aid  the  Athenians  with  men  and  money  in  the 
rebuilding  of  the  fortifications  of  the  Peirseus  and  the  Long  Walls. 
The  restoration  of  their  walls  seemed  to  the  exultant  and  hopeful 
Athenians  the  pledge  of  the  restoration  of  their  fallen  empire. 

But  this  restoration  of  the  defenses  of  Athens  naturally  stirred 
the  jealousy  of  her  new  alHes,  so  that  their  zeal  in  the  prosecution 
of  the  war  against  Sparta  slackened,  while  at  the  same  time  it 
awakened  the  fears  of  the  Spartans,  who,  after  maintaining  the 
struggle  for  some  years  longer,  resolved  to  save  their  authority  in 
Greece  proper  by  making  peace  with  the  Persians. 

The  Peace  of  Antalcidas  (387  b.c).  —  In  pursuance  of  this 
resolution  they  sent  to  Susa  an  ambassador  named  Antalcidas, 
through  whose  eff'orts  were  arranged  the  articles  of  a  treaty,  which 
is  called  after  him  the  Peace  of  Antalcidas.  By  the  terms  of  this 
treaty,  famous  because  so  infamous,  all  the  Greek  cities  of  Asia 
Minor,  as  well  as  the  island  of  Cyprus  and  the  island-city  of 
Clazomenae,  were  handed  over  to  the  Persians.  Three  islands 
—  Lemnos,  Imbros,  and  Scyros  —  were  given  to  Athens.  All 
the  other  islands,  and  the  states  of  the  Grecian  mainland,  were 
left  each  in  a  condition  of  isolated  independence.  No  city  was 
to  rule  over  others  or  to  exact  tribute  from  them.  The  edict 
of  King  Artaxerxes  closed  as  follows  :  "  Whosoever  refuses  to 
accept  this  peace,  him  I  shall  fight,  assisted  by  those  who  are  of 
the  same  mind  [which  meant  the  Spartans],  by  land  as  well  as  by 
sea,  with  ships  and  with  money." 

Thus  were  the  Asian  Greeks  betrayed  by  Sparta  into  the  hands 
of  the  barbarians.  Thus  were  the  hated  Persians,  through  her 
shameful  betrayal  of  Hellenic  interests,  made  the  arbiters  in 
Greek  affairs.     In  strong  contrast  to  the  selfish  conduct  of  Sparta 


SPARTA   FORCES    THE    TERMS   OF   THE  PEACE.        405 

at  this  moment  stands  that  of  Athens  when,  with  absolute  destruc- 
tion impending  over  her,  she  indignantly  rejected  the  proposal  of 
Mardonius  to  betray  for  her  own  advantage  the  liberties  of  the 
other  Grecian  cities  (p.  210). 

Sparta  forces  the  Terms  of  the  Peace  upon  the  Other  Grecian 
Cities,  but  disregards  them  herself.  —  Sparta  regarded  herself  as 
the  executor  of  the  Peace.  One  of  its  articles  said  that  every  city 
should  be  autonomous,  —  that  no  city  should  rule  over  another ; 
and  Sparta  now  set  about  enforcing  this  provision  of  the  treaty, 
not  with  a  view  to  giving  liberty  to  cities  that  were  being  held  in 
unwiUing  subjection  by  more  powerful  neighbors,  but  solely  for  the 
purpose  of  breaking  up  all  unions  and  federations  that  might  place 
a  check  upon  her  ambition  and  tyranny. 

Under  the  operation  of  the  treaty,  the  Boeotian  league  fell  to 
pieces.  The  Spartans  saw  to  it  that  the  dissolution  was  complete, 
and  that  there  should  be  no  chance  for  Thebes  to  revive  her 
presidency  of  the  Boeotian  towns.  Spartan  garrisons  and  har- 
mosts  were  established  in  Orchomenus  and  Thespiae,  and  the 
government  in  these  and  other  places  put  in  the  hands  of  ohgarchs 
friendly  to  Sparta.  Plata^a  was  restored,  and  a  Spartan  garrison 
placed  in  the  town.  Thus  all  Boeotia  was  broken  up  into  petty 
states  wholly  dependent  upon  Sparta. 

From  the  dissolution  of  the  Boeotian  league  the  Spartans  pro- 
ceeded to  the  dissolution  of  the  Arcadian  city  of  Mantinea.  The 
articles  of  the  Peace  did  not  of  course  have  any  relation  to 
individual  cities,  but  the  Spartans,  nevertheless,  stretched  its 
terms  so  as  to  make  them  apply  to  the  case  in  hand.  The 
Mantineans  had  been  guilty  of  no  hostile  act  towards  Sparta,  but 
were,  the  Spartans  imagined,  not  friendly  in  their  feehngs  towards 
them.  Accordingly  they  ordered  them  to  tear  down  their  walls. 
The  Mantineans  refusing  to  comply  with  this  mandate,  the  Spar- 
tans laid  siege  to  the  town,  and  soon  forced  it  to  surrender.  The 
city  was  now  broken  up  into  five  unwalled  villages,  four-fifths  of 
the  inhabitants  being  forced  to  tear  down  their  houses  in  the  old 
town  and  put  them  up  again  out  in  the  country. 


406  THE   SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 

The  Olynthian  confederacy  was  next  dissolved.  This  was  a 
most  important  union  of  Macedonian  and  Grecian  towns  in  the 
Chalcidian  region.  It  was  a  free  and  equal  federation  of  cities, 
somewhat  like  the  old  Confederacy  of  Delos.  The  towns  had 
adopted  common  laws,  sanctioned  intermarriage  between  their 
citizens,  and  adopted  liberal  regulations  respecting  residence 
and  commerce.  The  confederates  were  rapidly  extending  their 
union  among  the  cities,  barbarian  and  Hellenic,  of  the  northern 
shore,  and  were  about  to  send  envoys  to  Thebes  and  Athens  to 
invite  their  aUiance.  It  was  one  of  the  most  promising  attempts 
that  had  yet  been  made  to  create  an  Hellenic  nation  out  of  the 
isolated  cities  of  Hellas. 

But  the  towns  of  Acanthus  and  ApoUonia,  not  wishing  to  give 
up  their  own  laws  or  any  part  of  their  autonomy,  refused  to  join 
the  union ;  and  when  the  Olynthians  threatened  to  force  them 
to  do  so,  they  dispatched  envoys  to  inform  the  Spartans  of  what 
was  going  on  in  Chalcidice,  and  to  entreat  them  to  break  up  the 
league  before  it  became  too  powerful  to  be  opposed.  The  Spar- 
tans resolved  at  once  to  put  an  end  to  the  confederacy.  A  force 
was  dispatched  to  the  Thracian  shore,  and  the  prosperous  and 
promising  league  was  broken  up  (379  B.C.). 

The  Spartans  had  committed  many  sins  against  Hellenic  lib- 
erties, but  none  that  drew  after  it  a  more  lamentable  train  of 
consequences  than  this.  The  Olynthian  league,  had  it  been 
allowed  to  consolidate  itself,  might  have  proved  a  bulwark  to 
Greece  against  the  encroachments  of  the  kings  of  Macedonia. 

The  military  movements  of  the  Spartans  against  the  Olynthian 
confederacy  connect  themselves  with  a  shameful  act  of  perfidy 
committed  by  them  against  the  Thebans.  As  the  Spartan  gen- 
eral Phoebidas  was  marching  through  Boeotia  on  his  way  to  Chal- 
cidice, he,  at  the  instigation  of  some  Theban  oligarchs,  and 
consumed  by  a  desire  to  do  some  great  thing,  made  a  secret 
descent  upon  Thebes,  while  the  inhabitants  were  engaged  in  the 
celebration  of  a  festival,  and  seized  and  garrisoned  the  citadel 
(382   B.C.).     All  Greece   stood   aghast  at   the  perfidious,  high- 


ATHENS  FORMS  A   NEW   CONFEDERACY,  407 

handed  proceeding,  and  looked  to  see  the  Spartans  at  home 
repudiate  the  act  of  their  general.  They  did  so  in  this  way : 
they  fined  Phoebidas  for  his  conduct,  and  deposed  him  from  his 
command,  but  retained  possession  of  the  stolen  citadel. 

The  Liberation  of  Thebes  by  Pelopidas  (379  b.c.)  and  the 
Revival  of  the  Boeotian  League  (374  b.c). —  Even  Xenophon, 
the  admirer  and  steady  friend  of  the  Lacedaemonians,  was  con- 
strained to  see  in  the  misfortunes  that  now  began  to  befall  Sparta 
the  divine  retribution  upon  her  for  her  violation  of  her  solemn 
pledge  to  leave  the  Grecian  cities  free,  and  above  all  for  her 
crime  in  seizing  the  citadel  of  the  Thebans.^ 

As  if  to  meet  the  requirements  of  ideal  justice,  the  avengers  of 
the  wrongs  of  Thebes  were  raised  up  from  among  those  very 
persons  whom  that  traitorous  act  had  made  exiles  from  their 
native  city.  Among  those  exiles  who  had  found  an  asylum  at 
Athens  was  Pelopidas,  a  Theban  of  distinguished  family,  and  a 
man  of  generous  enthusiasms  and  firm  resolution.  Taking  with 
him  six  other  exiles,  Pelopidas  entered  Thebes  by  stealth,  and  by 
means  of  a  stratagem  slew  the  leaders  of  the  oligarchical  party. 
The  people  were  then  called  to  arms,  the  Lacedaemonian  garrison 
was  compelled  to  withdraw  from  the  citadel,  and  the  government 
was  taken  into  the  hands  of  the  popular  party. 

The  efforts  of  the  Spartans  to  regain  possession  of  the  city  were 
unsuccessful ;  and  even  their  garrisons  in  the  other  Boeotian  towns 
were  finally  expelled  by  the  Thebans,  who  were  now  being  led 
by  Epaminondas,  a  devoted  friend  of  Pelopidas  and  the  greatest 
statesman  and  commander  that  Thebes  ever  produced.  Under 
his  inspiration  the  old  Boeotian  league  was  revived,  with  Thebes  as 
the  presiding  city.  This  restoration  of  the  ancient  confederacy 
was  attended  by  another  reversal  of  fortune  for  the  unfortunate 
Plataeans.  They  were  expelled  from  their  recently  restored  town, 
and  once  more  it  was  levelled  to  the  ground. 

Athens  forms  a  New  Confederacy.  —  The  liberation  of  Thebes 
and  the  succeeding  revolution  in  Boeotia  marked  the  beginning 
1  Xenoph.  Hellen.  v.  4,  i. 


408  THE   SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 

of  a  new  chapter  in  Grecian  history.  Encouraged  by  the  event, 
Athens  formed  a  new  confederacy  like  the  old  Delian  League. 
The  union  numbered  at  last  over  seventy  members.  Even 
Thebes  joined  it.  The  confederacy  was  to  rest  on  principles  of 
absolute  equality  and  justice.  Its  affairs  were  to  be  directed  by 
an  assembly  composed  of  representatives  of  all  the  allied  cities. 
The  members  were  to  make  contributions  to  a  common  fund; 
but  there  was  to  be  no  more  tribute-collecting  by  Athens. 
Furthermore,  the  Athenians  solemnly  bound  themselves  not  to 
establish  any  cleruchies  in  the  territories  of  their  allies. 

The  allies  carried  on  hostilities  against  Sparta  by  sea  and  by 
land,  the  Thebans  succeeding  in  driving  out  the  Spartans,  as  has 
just  been  related,  from  all  the  Boeotian  towns,  and  the  Athenians 
being  successful  in  constantly  adding  to  the  membership  of  the 
new  league. 

The  Congress  at  Sparta  (371  b.c).  —  But  it  was  not  to  be 
expected  that  Athens  and  Thebes  would  long  work  together  as 
yoke-fellows.  Athens  became  jealous  of  the  growing  power  of 
Thebes,  and  resolved  to  make  peace  with  the  Lacedaemonians. 
A  congress  of  the  Grecian  cities  was  convened  at  Sparta. 

It  was  agreed  that  the  provisions  of  the  Peace  of  Antalcidas, 
which  provided  for  the  autonomy  of  every  Grecian  city,  should 
be  carried  out  in  good  faith  by  all  parties.  Sparta  was  to  with- 
draw her  harmosts  and  garrisons  from  all  towns  where  she  had 
l^established  them.  The  treaty  drawn  on  these  lines  was  sworn 
to  by  x\thens  and  her  allies  separately.  The  Spartans  took  the 
oath  for  themselves  and  for  their  allies.  The  Thebans  at  first  took 
the  oath  for  themselves ;  but  afterwards  wished  to  take  it  for  all 
the  Boeotians,  Epaminondas  contending  that  Thebes  had  as  good 
a  right  to  speak  for  all  Boeotia  as  Sparta  had  for  Laconia  or 
Athens  for  all  the  townships  of  Attica.  But  Agesilaus  would  not 
allow  the  record  to  be  changed,  and  when  the  Thebans  insisted 
upon  this  being  done,  he  angrily  erased  their  name  from  the 
treaty.  Thus  peace  was  concluded  without  the  Thebans  having 
any  part  in  it. 


THE   BATTLE    OF  LEUCTRA. 


409 


The  Battle  of  Leuctra  (371  b.c).  —  The  Spartans  now  ordered 
their  kmg  Cleombrotus  to  march  into  Boeotia  and  compel  Thebes  to 
restore  independence  to  the  various  Boeotian  towns.  The  Thebans 
marched  out  and  met  the  invaders  at  Leuctra,  not  far  from  Thes- 
pise.  The  Spartans  had  no  other  thought  than  that  they  should 
gain  an  easy  victory  over  the  Thebans ;  and  it  was  generally  ex- 
pected that  Thebes  would  now  be  broken  up  into  villages  as  Man- 
tinea  had  been,  or  perhaps 
destroyed  utterly. 

But  the  military  genius 
of  Epaminondas  had  pre- 
pared for  Hellas  a  startling 
surprise.  He  had  intro- 
duced in  the  arrangement 
and  movement  of  his  bat- 
tle-line one  of  the  greatest 
innovations  that  mark  the 
advance  in  the  art  of  war. 
Hitherto  the  Greeks  had 
fought  drawn  up  in  ex- 
tended and  comparatively  thin  opposing  lines,  not  more  than 
twelve  ranks  deep.  The  Spartans  at  Leuctra  formed  their 
Hne  in  the  usual  way.  Epaminondas,  on  the  other  hand,  massed 
his  best  troops  in  a  solid  column  fifty  deep,  on  the  left  of 
his  battle-line,  the  rest  being  drawn  up  in  the  ordinary  extended  ^ 
line.  With  all  ready  for  the  attack,  the  phalanx  was  set  in  motion 
first,  the  centre  of  the  hne  next,  and  the  right  wing  last,  so 
that  the  solid  column  should  strike  the  enemy's  line  before  the 
centre  or  right  should  come  into  action.  The  result  was  that  the 
phalanx  ploughed  through  the  thin  Hne  of  the  enemy  "  as  the  beak 
of  a  ship  ploughs  through  a  wave,"  —  and  the  day  was  won. 

The  column  had  been  launched  at  that  part  of  the  enemy's  line 
which  was  held  by  the  Spartans  themselves  under  the  command  of 
King  Cleombrotus.  Of  the  seven  hundred  that  formed  the  Spartan 
contingent,  four  hundred  were  killed,  including  the  king  himself, 


PLAN  OF  THE  BATTLE  OF  LEUCTRA, 
371  B.C. 


410  THE   SPARTAN  HEGEMONY. 

This  was  the  first  time  the  Spartans  had  lost  a  king  on  the  field 
of  battle  since  the  death  of  Leonidas  at  the  Pass  of  Thermopylae. 

The  manner  in  which  the  news  of  the  overwhelming  calamity- 
was  received  at  Sparta  affords  a  striking  illustration  of  Spartan 
discipline  and  self-control.  It  so  happened  that  at  the  moment 
the  messenger  arrived  bearing  the  intelligence,  the  Spartans  were 
celebrating  a  festival  known  as  the  Gymnopaedia.  The  ephors 
would  permit  no  interruption  of  the  entertainment.  They  merely 
sent  lists  of  the  fallen  to  their  families,  and  ordered  that  the  women 
should  make  no  lamentation  nor  show  any  signs  of  grief.  "  The 
following  day,"  says  Xenophon,  "  those  who  had  lost  relatives  in 
the  battle  appeared  on  the  streets  with  cheerful  faces,  while  those 
whose  relatives  had  escaped,  if  they  appeared  in  public  at  all, 
went  about  with  sad  and  dejected  looks."  ^  Historians  have 
very  naturally  been  led  to  contrast  this  scene  at  Sparta  with  that 
at  Athens  upon  the  night  of  the  receipt  of  the  news  of  the  dis- 
aster of  ^gospotami  (p.  392).  The  contrast  impresses  us  with 
the  wide  interval  which  separated  the  Athenian  from  the  Spartan. 

The  moral  effect  of  the  battle  was  greater  perhaps  than  that  of 
any  other  battle  ever  fought  in  Greece,  except  possibly  that  of 
Marathon.  It  was  the  first  time  that  a  Spartan  army  with  its  king 
had  been  fairly  beaten  in  a  great  battle  by  an  enemy  inferior  in 
numbers.  The  Spartan  forces  at  Thermopylae  headed  by  their  king 
had,  it  is  true,  been  annihilated,  —  but  annihilation  is  not  defeat. 
Consequently  the  impression  which  the  event  produced  throughout 
Greece  was  profound.  The  prestige  of  Sparta  was  destroyed. 
Her  empire  was  brought  to  an  end.     Thebes  was  now  supreme. 

Referenxes.  —  Plutarch,  Lives  of  Lysander,  Agesilaus^  and  Artaxerxes. 
Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  iv.  pp.  9-346.  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten 
volume  ed.),  vol.  vi.  pp.  451-533;  ib.  vol.  vii,  pp.  81-172  (on  Socrates);  ib. 
vol.  vii.  pp.  173-348  (on  the  Expedition  of  Cyrus);  ib.  vol.  vii.  pp.  450-550; 
ib.  vol.  viii.  pp.  1-178;  (twelve  volume,  ed.),  vol.  viii.  pp.  231-316  and  399- 
496;  ib.  vol.  ix.  pp.  1-180  and  284-388;  ib.  vol.  x,  pp.  1-188.  Sankey,  The 
Spartan  and  Theban  Supremacies  (Epoch  Series). 

1  Xenoph.  Helten.  vi.  4,  16. 


THE  IIUMIUATTON  OF  SPARTA.  411 


CHAPTER  XXIIL 

THE  ASCENDENCY  OF  THEBES. 

(371-362  B.C.) 

The  Humiliation  of  Sparta.  —  The  defeat  on  the  field  of 
Leuctra  was  but  the  first  of  a  series  of  humihations  which  now 
came  to  Sparta  thick  and  fast.  Many  of  her  alUes  or  dependents 
turned  from  her  and  sought  alhance  with  either  Thebes  or  Athens. 
Through  the  influence  of  the  Thebans,  the  Amphictyons  imposed 
upon  her  an  immense  fine  of  five  hundred  talents  for  her  impious 
conduct  in  seizing  and  retaining,  in  flagrant  violation  of  Hellenic 
law,  the  citadel  of  Thebes.  The  Spartans  did  not  pay  the  fine,  but 
its  imposition  expressed  the  general  condemnation  of  their  conduct. 

A  more  signal  humiliation  came  to  them  in  connection  with 
their  relations  to  Mantinea.  It  will  be  recalled  that  one  of  Sparta's 
most  tyrannical  acts  was  the  breaking-up  of  that  city  into  villages 
(p.  405).  Immediately  upon  the  receipt  of  the  news  from  Leuctra 
the  Mantineans  assembled  and  began  to  rebuild  their  old  city. 
King  Agesilaus,  whose  personal  relations  to  the  Mantineans  had 
always  been  friendly,  went  to  Mantinea  in  behalf  of  Sparta,  and 
entreated  the  Mantineans  to  delay  work  upon  their  walls  until  the 
Spartans  had  given  their  assent  for  their  restoration.  This  assent, 
he  assured  them,  would  be  given  without  delay ;  and,  besides,  the 
Spartans  would  contribute  towards  the  expense  of  the  rebuilding 
of  the  defenses.  But  even  this  humble  suit  of  the  Spartans  was 
rejected  by  the  Mantineans,  and  the  walls  of  the  city  were  restored 
without  the  Spartans  being  allowed  even  the  poor  satisfaction  of 
giving  their  formal  consent  to  the  operation. 


412  THE  ASCENDENCY  OF  THEBES. 

Epaminondas  ravages  Laconia  (^370  b.c), — The  Spartans 
were  destined  to  a  still  more  bitter  humiliation.  They  were  to  see 
their  hitherto  inviolable  territory  invaded  and  ravaged  by  their 
enemies. 

The  victory  of  the  Thebans  at  Leuctra  had  Ufted  Thebes  at  once 
to  a  commanding  position  in  Greece.  Almost  all  the  states  of 
Central  Greece  now  entered  into  an  alliance  with  her.  So  many 
were  her  allies,  and  so  eager  were  all  to  inflict  punishment  upon 
Sparta  for  all  her  past  acts  of  usurpation  and  despotism,  that 
Epaminondas  was  able  to  raise  an  immense  army,  numbering,  it  is 
said,  sixty  or  seventy  thousand,  for  the  invasion  of  the  Peloponnesus. 
The  chief  object  of  the  expedition,  as  we  shall  learn  presently, 
was  to  aid  the  Arcadians  in  forming  a  confederacy  for  defense 
against  Sparta;  but- yielding  to  the  wishes  of  his  allies,  Epaminon- 
das marched  through  Arcadia  and  into  Laconia,  which  he  ravaged 
from  the  northern  mountains  to  the  sea  on  the  south,  following  the 
course  of  the  Eurotas.  He  even  threatened  Sparta  itself  with 
assault,  but  the  readiness  of  the  Spartans  for  an  attack,  and  the 
knowledge  that  they  would  make  a  desperate  defense  of  their  city, 
caused  him  prudently  to  refrain  from  attacking  them  thus  at  bay. 
The  Spartan  women  had  never  before  seen  the  camp-fire  of  an 
enemy  ;  and  the  sight  of  the  hostile  army  is  said  to  have  excited 
them  to  frantic  demonstrations  of  distress. 
The  Founding  of  Megalopolis  (370  b.c.)  .  —  With  Laconia  ravaged 

and  the  Spartans  subjected  to 
the  humiliation  of  seeing  their 
bitterest  enemies  encamped  in 
front  of  their  city,  Epaminondas 
returned  to  Arcadia.  The  Ar- 
cadians, as  we  have  intimated, 
were  at  this  moment  stirred  by 
Fig.  33.   COIN  OF^TH^E^ARCADiAN  CON-    an  impulse  towards  utiion.     Up 

to  this  time  they  had  lived,  for 
the  most  part,  in  isolated  and  independent  villages.  In  all 
their    country   there   were    only    a  few  walled    towns,  of    which 


THE   FOUNDING    OF  MESSENE.  413 

Tegea  and  Mantinea  were  chief.  Largely  because  of  this  state 
of  things,  Sparta  had  been  able  to  hold  the  different  towns  and 
villages  in  subjection,  and  compel  them  to  do  her  bidding. 
But  now  the  sentiment  of  co-operation  and  union  had  seized 
upon  the  Arcadian  villages,  and  they  were  resolved,  without 
giving  up  wholly  their  local  independence,  to  surrender  so  much 
of  it  as  might  be  necessary  for  the  formation  of  a  union  which,  so 
far  as  concerned  all  foreign  affairs  and  other  matters  of  common 
concern,  should  make  them  one  powerful  federal  state. 

Taking  advantage  of  their  newly  awakened  enthusiasm  for  a 
national  union,  Epaminondas  was  enabled  to  do  for  Arcadia  some- 
thing hke  what  King  Theseus  is  said  to  have  done  for  Attica  (p.  102) . 
He  united  forty  of  the  Arcadian  villages  or  townships  into  a  single 
city,  which  he  named  Megalopolis  (Great  City).  Neither  Tegea 
nor  Mantinea  could  be  made  the  nucleus  of  the  new  town  on 
account  of  local  jealousies.  The  walls  of  the  city  were  about  five 
miles  in  circuit.  It  is  not  probable  that  all  the  people  from  the 
forty  townships  moved  to  the  new  capital ;  but  the  greater  part 
seem  to  have  done  so.  Thus  almost  in  a  day  was  a  great  city 
created,  and  the  Arcadians,  entrenched  behind  the  walls  of  their 
capital,  were  rendered  secure  against  the  encroachments  of 
Sparta. 

The  Founding  of  Messene  and  the  Liberation  of  the  Mes- 
senians  (370  b.c).  —  From  Arcadia  Epaminondas  marched  into 
Messenia  with  the  view  to  liberating  the  Messenians.  On  the 
slopes  of  Mount  Ithome,  the  stronghold  of  the  Messenians  in  their 
early  heroic  struggles  with  Sparta  (p.  70),  he  founded  a  new  city 
which  he  called  Messene,  whose  citadel,  perched  upon  the  very 
top  of  the  mountain,  was  united  by  walls  to  the  town  itself.  The 
emancipation  of  the  Messenians  from  their  Spartan  masters  was 
proclaimed,  and  Messenia,  which  for  three  hundred  years  had 
been  a  part  of  Laconia,  was  separated  from  Sparta  and  made 
an  independent  state.  In  thus  restoring  independence  to  the 
Messenians,  Epaminondas  was  merely  enforcing  against  Sparta 
the  terms  of  the  Peace  of  Antalcidas  (p.  404),  the  articles  of  which 


414  THE  ASCENDENCY  OF   THEBES. 

she  had  herself  dictated,  and  which  said  that  all  the  Grecian  cities 
should  be  left  free  and  independent. 

The  Helots  and  Perioeci,  converted  by  the  proclamation  of 
emancipation  into  freemen,  engaged  in  the  work  of  building  the 
new  city  of  Messene,  which  was  to  represent  their  restored  nation- 
ality. The  walls  went  up  amidst  music  and  rejoicing.  Messenian 
exiles,  the  victims  of  Spartan  tyranny,  flocked  from  all  parts  of  the 
Hellenic  world,  to  rebuild  their  homes  in  the  home  land. 

This  emancipation  and  restoration  of  the  Messenians  forms  one 
of  the  most  interesting  transactions  in  Grecian  history.  Two  years 
after  their  liberation  (in  368  B.C.),  a  Messenian  boy  was  crowned 
as  a  victor  in  the  foot-race  at  Olympia.  For  three  hundred 
years  the  Messenians  had  had  neither  lot  nor  part  in  these  national 
games,  for  only  free  Hellenes  could  become  contestants.  How  the 
news  of  the  victory  was  received  in  Messenia  is  not  recorded,  but 
we  probably  should  not  be  wrong  were  we  to  imagine  the  rejoicings 
there  to  have  been  unlike  anything  the  Grecian  world  had  ever 
seen  before. 

The  liberation  of  Messenia  was  a  terrible  blow  to  Spartan  pride, 
and  an  unmeasured  loss  and  damage  to  her  power.  It  was  intol- 
erable to  her  in  the  Peloponnesian  War  to  have  a  hostile  garrison 
entrenched  at  a  single  point  on  the  Messenian  coast  (p.  308). 
Now  all  Messenia  had  become  an  asylum  for  runaway  Helots 
from  Laconia,  and  the  residence  and  stronghold  of  her  former 
subjects,  embittered  by  centuries  of  hard  bondage. 

Thus  had  Epaminondas  in  a  few  short  months  effected  one  of 
the  greatest  revolutions  in  Grecian  history.  In  his  own  words, 
he  "  had  liberated  all  the  Greek  cities,  restored  independence  to 
Messenia,  and  surrounded  Sparta  with  a  perpetual  blockade." 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  following  his  entrance  into  the  Pelo- 
ponnesus, Epaminondas  recrossed  the  Isthmus  and  returned  to 
Thebes. 

The  Humbled  Spartans  sue  for  Help  at  Athens.  —  In  their 
extremity  the  humbled  Spartans  brought  themselves  to  sue  for  help 
at  Athens.     "  When  after  the  loss  of  your  fleet  at  ^gospotami  you 


THE    THE  BANS  EXTEND    THEIR  INFLUENCE.        415 

were  on  the  verge  of  ruin,"  they  said  in  substance  to  the  Athe- 
nians, "  and  the  Thebans  wished  to  destroy  you,  then  we  saved  you 
[p.  393].  Requite  to  us  now  the  service  we  rendered  you  then." 
The  appeal,  conjoined  with  the  Athenians'  jealousy  of  the  daily 
growing  power  and  influence  of  Thebes,  availed  to  move  the  Athe- 
nians to  go  to  the  rescue  of  their  imperilled  enemy,  even  as  in 
Cimon's  time  they  had  sent  them  help  against  their  revolted 
Helots  (p.  242). 

The  strength  which  the  Athenian  alliance  brought  to  Sparta, 
together  with  the  aid  extended  to  her  by  a  few  of  her  old  allies 
who  still  stood  loyally  by  her  in  her  misfortune,  enabled  her  to 
maintain  the  struggle  with  Thebes  and  her  allies  on  something  like 
equal  terms.^ 

The  Thebans  extend  their  Influence  in  the  North.  —  About  the 
time  that  Epaminondas  was  effecting  such  changes  in  the  Pelopon- 
nesus, his  friend  Pelopidas  was  extending  the  influence  of  Thebes 
in  the  North.  At  this  time,  Alexander,  tyrant  of  Pherae  in  Thes- 
saly,  was  holding  the  other  Thessalian  cities  in  unwilling  subjec- 
tion.^ Some  of  them  rose  against  him  and  called  upon  Thebes 
to  help  deliver  them  from  his  tyranny.  Pelopidas  led  a  Theban 
force  into  the  country,  and  compelled  Alexander  to  grant  freedom  to 
the  revolted  towns  {^T^d^  B.C.) .  He  then  marched  against  the  regent 
of  Macedonia,  who  had  been  interfering  in  Thessalian  affairs,  and 
forced  him  to  enter  into  an  alliance  with  Thebes  and  to  give  host- 
ages. Among  these  hostages  was  a  young  Macedonian  prince 
named  Philip,  of  whom  we  shall  hear  much,  later  on,  as  king  of 
Macedon.  Thus  the  expedition  of  Pelopidas  resulted  in  both 
Thessaly  and  Macedonia  being  brought  into  dependent  relations 
to  Thebes. 

The  year  following  these  achievements  Pelopidas  was  sent  as 

1  During  the  years  369  and  367  B.C.  Epaminondas  made  his  second  and  third 
expeditions  beyond  the  Isthmus,  but  accomplished  nothing  of  importance. 

2  This  tyranny  had  been  estabHshed  by  Jason  of  Pherse,  who  had  reduced  all 
Thessaly  to  a  state  of  dependence.  Jason  was  a  man  of  unusual  ability,  and 
seemed  about  to  anticipate  the  Macedonian  sovereigns  in  the  conquest  of  both 
Greece  and  Asia,  when  he  was  struck  down  by  assassins  (370  B.c). 


416  THE   ASCENDENCY   OF   THEBES. 

an  envoy  to  Susa  to  secure  the  recognition  by  the  Great  King 
of  Thebes  instead  of  Sparta  as  the  head  of  the  Greek  cities  and 
the  practical  executor  of  the  articles  of  the  Peace  of  Antalcidas. 
Thebes  secured  all  she  desired.  This  appeal  to  the  Persian  king, 
whereby  he  was  recognized  as  the  rightful  arbiter  in  Greek  affairs, 
was  the  most  censurable  act  of  the  Thebans  during  their  period 
of  supremacy.  But  in  going  to  Susa,  the  Thebans  were  merely 
walking  in  a  path  worn  by  the  Spartans  and  other  Greeks. 

It  was  shortly  after  this  embassy,  apparently,  that  Pelopidas, 
while  on  some  public  mission  to  the  cities  of  Thessaly,  was  arrested 
and  imprisoned  by  Alexander  of  Pherse.  The  Thebans  sent  a  large 
army  to  effect,  if  possible,  the  rescue  of  their  general ;  but  the 
expedition  failed  of  its  purpose.  A  second  expedition,  however, 
led  by  Epaminondas,  was  more  successful,  and  the  hero  was 
brought  back  to  Thebes  in  triumph.  Shortly  afterwards,  while 
leading  an  avenging  army  against  Alexander,  Pelopidas  was 
killed  (364  B.C.). 

In  the  death  of  Pelopidas  the  Thebans  were  deprived  of  th^ir 
best  citizen  and  their  ablest  general  after  Epaminondas,  and  the 
Thessalians  lost  a  champion  whom  they  greatly  loved  and  honored 
as  the  founder  of  their  liberties. 

The  Battle  of  Mantinea  and  the  Death  of  Epaminondas  (362 
B.C.).  —  In  the  year  362  B.C.,  Epaminondas  made  his  fourth^  and 
what  proved  to  be  his  last  expedition  into  the  Peloponnesus. 
Arriving  with  his  army  in  Arcadia  and  learning  that  the  Spartans 
under  their  aged  king  Agesilaus  were  marching  northward  in  full 
force  to  meet  him,  Epaminondas  hurried  across  the  mountains  into 
Laconia,  thinking  to  seize  Sparta,  which  in  Xenophon's  phrases 
was  now  "  like  a  nest  unprotected  by  the  parent  birds."  But  Age- 
silaus, being  informed  of  the  movements  of  the  enemy,  hastened 
back  to  Sparta,  fortunately  arriving  there  before  the  Thebans. 

Finding  the  city  thus  in  a  fair  state  of  defense,  Epaminondas, 
though  his  troops  actually  penetrated  the  unwalled  town  at  certain 
points,  did  not  deem  it  wise  to  attack  the  Spartans  posted  in  the 

1  See  p.  415,  n.  i. 


THE  BATTLE    OF  MANTINEA.  417 

entrances  to  the  streets  and  on  the  roofs  of  the  houses  ;  but 
abandoning  the  idea  of  capturing  the  place,  retreated  into 
Arcadia,  whither  he  was  followed  by  the  Spartans.  Here,  near 
Mantinea,  the  hostile  armies  finally  joined  battle.  Among  the 
chief  allies  of  the  Spartans  were  the  Athenians  and  the  Manti- 
neans,  who  had  broken  away  from  the  Arcadian  union. 

Epaminondas  employed  the  same  tactics  on  this  field  as  had 
given  him  the  victory  at  Leuctra  (p.  409),  and  with  the  same 
result.  But  the  victory  was  dearly  purchased  with  the  life  of 
Epaminondas,  who,  at  the  moment  of  victory,  fell  mortally 
wounded  with  a  spear-thrust  in  the  breast. 

How  remarkable  was  the  ascendency  of  Epaminondas  over  his 
soldiers,  and  how  completely  he  had  become  the  very  soul  and 
Hfe  of  the  Theban  army,  are  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  blow 
which  struck  him  down,  so  absolutely  paralyzed  the  Theban 
troops  that,  as  the  fatal  intelligence  ran  through  their  ranks,  they 
instantly  stopped  short  in  their  victorious  advance,  and  thus 
failed  to  gather  the  fruits  of  the  victory  they  had  won. 

Epaminondas  in  a  dying  condition  was  borne  from  the  field. 
Having  received  assurance,  in  reply  to  his  inquiries,  that  his  shield 
was  safe  and  that  victory  rested  with  the  Thebans,  he  asked  by 
name  for  two  officers  to  whom  he  purposed  to  entrust  the  com- 
mand of  the  army.  He  was  told  that  both  were  among  the  slain. 
"Then,"  said  he,  "you  must  make  peace  with  the  enemy." 
Having  said  this,  he  calmly  directed  that  the  spear-head,  which 
had  remained  fixed  in  the  wound,  should  be  withdrawn  from  his 
breast,  and  his  life  went  out  with  the  flow  of  blood. 

In  accordance  with  the  dying  counsel  of  Epaminondas,  the 
victorious  Thebans  and  their  allies  negotiated  a  peace  with  the 
enemy.  Its  basis,  was  that  everything  should  remain  just  as  it 
then  was.  Particularly  were  both  Megalopolis  and  Messene, 
monuments  of  the  policy  and  genius  of  Epaminondas,  to  be  rec- 
ognized as  free  and  autonomous  cities.  The  peace  was  agreed  to  by 
all  the  states  on  both  sides,  save  by  the  Spartans,  who  angrily  and 
obstinately  refused  to  recognize  the  independence  of  Messene. 


418  THE  ASCENDENCY  OF   THEBES. 

The  Situation  in  Greece  after  the  Death  of  Epaminondas.  — 

The  hegemony  of  Thebes  ended  on  the  day  that  Epaminondas 
was  borne  to  the  tomb.  There  was  none  among  her  citizens 
capable  of  maintaining  for  her  the  leadership  in  Greece  which 
her  great  commander  and  statesman  had  won. 

All  the  chief  cities  of  Greece  now  lay  in  a  state  of  exhaustion 
or  of  helpless  isolation.  Sparta  had  destroyed  the  empire  of 
Athens ;  ^  Thebes  had  broken  the  dominion  of  Sparta,  but  had 
seemingly  exhausted  herself  in  the  effort.  There  was  now  no 
city  energetic,  resourceful,  unbroken  in  spirit  and  strength,  such 
as  was  Athens  at  the  time  of  the  Persian  War,  to  act  as  leader 
and  champion  of  the  Grecian  states.  Yet  never  was  there  greater 
need  of  such  leadeiship  in  Hellas  than  at  just  this  moment; 
for  the  Macedonian  monarchy  was  now  rising  in  the  North,  and 
threatening  the  independence  of  all  Greece. 

In  a  succeeding  chapter  we  shall  trace  the  rise  of  this  semi- 
barbarian  power,  and  tell  how  the  cities  of  Greece,  mutually 
exhausted  by  their  incessant  quarrels,  were  reduced  to  a  state 
of  dependence  upon  its  sovereign.  But  first  we  shall  turn  aside 
for  a  moment  from  the  affairs  of  the  cities  of  Greece  proper,  in 
order  to  cast  a  glance  upon  the  Greeks  of  Magna  Greecia  and  Sicily. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Life  of  Pelopidas.  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol. 
iv.  pp.  349-524.  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  viii.  pp.  178- 
365;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  x.  pp.  188-383.  Sankey,  The  Spartan  and 
Theban  Supremacies  (Epoch  Series). 

1  Athens  had  indeed  made  herself  the  centre  of  a  new  confederacy  (see  p.  407.) 
and  had  recovered  some  of  her  old  possessions,  but  she  was,  after  all,  only  the 
shadow  of  her  former  self. 


Fig.  34.     COIN    OF  THEBES. 


CARTHAGINIANS  LAY    WASTE  HELLENIC  SICILY.     419 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

THE  GREEKS  OF  WESTERN  HELLAS. 

(413-336  B.C.) 

The  Carthaginians  lay  waste  Hellenic  Sicily.  —  It  will  be 
remembered  that  it  was  the  inhabitants  of  Egesta  who  invited 
the  Athenians  into  Sicily,  to  aid  them  against  the  neighboring 
city  of  Selinus  (p.  ZZ^)-  Shortly  after  the  destruction  of  the 
Athenian  armament  before  Syracuse,  these  same  people  appealed 
to  the  Carthaginians  to  come  to  their  aid  against  the  same  old 
enemy. 

The  Carthaginians  came  with  a  great  army  of  a  hundred 
thousand  men  under  the  lead  of  Hannibal,  a  grandson  of  a  certain 
Hamilcar  who  seventy  years  before  this  had  been  defeated  and 
slain  by  the  tyrant  Gelo  on  the  memorable  field  of  Himera. 
Selinus  was  besieged  by  them,  and  after  a  brave  resistance  was 
finally  taken  by  storm.  The  inhabitants  were  either  massacred 
or  carried  away  into  slavery,  and  the  walls  and  temples  of  the 
city  destroyed  (409  b.c). 

Hannibal  next  led  his  barbarians  against  Himera.  The  Syra- 
cusans  sent  a  force  to  aid  in  manning  its  walls ;  but  later,  appre- 
hending an  attack  on  their  own  city  by  the  Carthaginians,  they 
resolved  to  abandon  the  defense  of  the  place.  Accordingly  the 
old  men,  the  women,  and  the  children  were  sent  away  in  boats, 
but  before  the  vessels  had  time  to  return  for  those  left  behind, 
the  enemy  burst  into  the  town.  In  revenge  for  the  death  of  his 
ancestor,  Hannibal  offered  up  to  his  gods  an  awful  holocaust 
of  three  thousand  of  his   prisoners^  and  razed  the  city  to  the 


420  THE    GREEKS   OF   WESTERN  HELLAS. 

ground  (409  b.c).  The  dismay  created  throughout  the  Hellenic 
world  by  this  wiping-out  by  the  Western  barbarians  of  this  ancient 
and  powerful  Greek  city  was  Uke  that  created  by  the  destruction 
of  Miletus  by  the  Eastern  barbarians,  just  at  the  beginning  of 
the  Persian  Wars  (p.  146). 

A  few  years  later  the  Carthaginians  laid  siege  to  Agrigentum, 
which  was  at  this  time  one  of  the  most  populous  and  prosperous 
cities  of  the  Hellenic  world.  The  magnificence  of  its  public  build- 
ings, and  the  wealth  and  luxury  of  its  inhabitants,  were  simply 
fabulous.  A  large  Syracusan  army  aided  in  the  defense  of  the 
city.  A  long  and  stubborn  resistance  was  ended  by  threatened 
famine.  The  inhabitants  escaped  massacre  by  a  hurried  flight 
under  cover  of  the  darkness  of  night.  Two  hundred  thousand 
fugitives,  men,  women,  and  children,  made  up  the  pitiable  proces- 
sion. The  homeless  multitude  found  asylum  among  the  various 
Greek  communities  in  the  island,  the  most  of  the  refugees,  how- 
ever, finding  shelter  at  Leontini.  All  who  had  not  been  able  to 
join  the  night  march  were  massacred  by  the  enemy.  The  spoils 
of  the  city  were  immense.  One  article  of  the  vast  booty  secured 
by  the  barbarians  was  the  brazen  bull  of  the  tyrant  Phalaris  (p.  96), 
which  was  carried  as  a  trophy  to  Carthage  (406  B.C.). 

Thus  in  the  course  of  three  years  did  the  barbarians,  finding 
their  opportunity  in  the  dissensions  and  lack  of  effective  union 
among  the  Greek  cities,  succeed  in  blotting  out  several  of  the 
largest  and  most  prosperous  of  the  Hellenic  communities  of  Sicily. 
Throughout  a  considerable  part  of  the  island  Hellenic  civilization, 
planted  centuries  before,  was  practically  uprooted.  As  we  shall 
see,  the  land  afterwards  recovered  in  a  measure  from  the  terrible 
blow,  and  enjoyed  a  short  bloom  of  prosperity ;  nevertheless 
the  resources  and  energies  of  this  part  of  the  Hellenic  world, 
like  those  of  Central  Greece  through  the  unhappy  causes  we  have 
recounted  in  other  chapters,  were  permanently  and  irremediably 
impaired. 

Dionysius  I.,  Tyrant  of  Syracuse  (405-367  b.c). — The  alarm, 
distress,  and  anarchy  occasioned  by  the  invasions  of  the  Cartha- 


DIONYSTUS  /.,   TYRANT   OF  SYRACUSE.  421 

ginians  afforded  the  opportunity  at  Syracuse  for  a  man  of  low- 
birth,  named  Dionysius,  to  usurp  the  government.  Having 
been  elected  virtual  dictator  by  the  people  to  meet  the  invaders, 
Dionysius  succeeded  in  converting  his  office  into  a  tyranny,  after 
the  manner  of  the  earlier  tyrants  (p.  90) .  His  career  as  despot 
of  the  city  was  long  and  remarkable,  embracing  a  period  of  thirty- 
eight  years.  His  activity  was  so  extraordinary  and  his  undertakings 
so  varied  and  intermingled,  that,  in  the  very  brief  account  of  his 
reign  which  we  are  able  to  give,  it  will  be  in  the  interest  of 
clearness  for  us  to  group  his  operations  without  regard  to  strict 
chronological  order. 

A  large  part  of  the  prolonged  reign  of  Dionysius  was  occupied 
in  ever-renewed  attempts  to  drive  the  Carthaginians  out  of 
Sicily.  He  engaged  in  four  distinct  wars  or  campaigns  against 
these  intruders.  The  struggle  was  marked  by  every  vicissitude  of 
fortune.  At  one  time,  the  Carthaginians  held  possession  of  the 
greater  part  of  Sicily  and  seemed  about  to  seize  Syracuse  itself;  at 
another,  Dionysius  had  succeeded  in  expelling  them  from  every 
place  in  the  island,  save  Lilybseum  and  Drepana,  cities  on  the 
western  shore  (391  b.c).  Time  and  again  the  Greeks  were  saved 
from  threatened  destruction  only  by  the  breaking  out  of  a  terrible 
pestilence  in  the  camp  of  the  enemy,  which  swept  them  away  by 
thousands.  The  issue  of  the  protracted  struggle,  so  far  as  the 
territorial  relations  of  the  Greeks  and  Phoenicians  in  the  island 
were  concerned,  was  that  at  the  end  of  the  rule  of  Dionysius  the 
frontier  between  the  Carthaginian  provinces  and  the  Greek  terri- 
tory was  the  same  as  at  the  beginning  of  his  tyranny,  except  as 
to  Agrigentum,  which  Dionysius  had  succeeded  in  permanently 
recovering  from  the  barbarians. 

At  the  same  time  that  Dionysius  was  carrying  on  his  campaigns 
against  the  foreigners,  he  was  reducing  the  free  Greek  cities, 
Naxos,  Catana,  Leontini,  and  the  others,  to  a  state  of  dependence 
upon  himself.  All  were  conquered  and  incorporated  in  the  em- 
pire of  the  tyrant. 

But  Dionysius  did  not  confine  his  operations  to  Sicily.     With  his 


422  THE    GREEKS   OF   WESTERN  HELLAS. 

power  fairly  consolidated  in  the  island,  he  turned  his  attention  to 
Magna  Graecia.  The  Greeks  here  were  just  at  this  time  maintain- 
ing a  hard  struggle  with  the  barbarian  Italian  tribes,  the  Lucanians 
and  others,  who  were  pressing  down  from  the  north  and  threaten- 
ing to  sweep  out  of  existence  the  Greek  colonies  that  fringed  the 
southern  shores  of  the  peninsula.  While  these  cities  were  thus 
being  harassed  on  the  side  of  the  land,  Dionysius  attacked  them 
on  the  side  of  the  sea.  He  conquered  them  all,  from  Rhegium 
to  Croton.  Many  of  the  cities  he  destroyed  as  ruthlessly  as 
though  he  were  a  barbarian  without  Hellenic  sympathies  and 
instincts.  Some  of  the  inhabitants  he  sold  into  slavery,  others 
he  transported  to  Sicily  to  swell  the  population  of  his  capital, 
Syracuse.  Even  the  temples  he  robbed  of  their  treasures.  The 
act  which  most  shocked  the  Greek  world  was  his  sale  to  the 
Carthaginians,  for  the  immense  sum  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
talents,  of  the  costly  robe  of  the  goddess  Hera,  of  which  he  had 
made  a  prize  at  her  temple  near  Croton. 

The  conquered  Italian  lands  were  incorporated  in  the  empire  of 
the  tyrant,  which  now  embraced  practically  all  of  Western  Hellas. 
Thus  upon  the  ruins  of  a  vast  number  of  once  free  and  prosperous 
Greek  cities,  Syracuse  was  raised  to  a  position  of  power  and 
influence  corresponding  to  that  which  Athens  had  so  recently 
held  in  Eastern  Hellas. 

Nor  were  the  tyrant's  plans  of  conquest  and  spoliation  confined 
to  Sicily  and  Italy.  With  the  cities  of  Magna  Graecia  subjugated, 
he  interfered  in  the  affairs  of  Epirus  and  those  of  Greece  proper, 
sending  thither  several  armaments  at  different  times  ;  and  it  is  said 
that  he  even  revolved  in  mind  an  attack  upon  Delphi  and  the 
seizure  of  the  vast  treasures  at  that  holy  place. 

But  the  military  operations  of  Dionysius  exhibit  only  one  phase 
of  his  many-sided  activity.  The  tyrant  possessed  a  Pericles'  love 
of  art,  and  during  his  rule  he  adorned  Syracuse  with  many  splendid 
public  buildings,  meeting  the  expense  of  their  erection  by  crushing 
taxes  levied  on  his  subjects,  and  the  confiscation  of  the  riches  of 
the  wealthy.     While  embellishing  the  city,  he  strengthened  and 


DIONYSIUS  /.,    TYRANT   OF  SYRACUSE.  '  423 

extended  vastly  its  walls,  and  enlarged  its  dockyards  and  arsenals, 
thus  making  the  city  in  its  outward  appearance  the  worthy  capital 
of  his  really  imperial  dominions.  Since  Athens  was  now  dis- 
mantled, Syracuse  was  at  this  time  probably  the  most  splendid  and 
powerful  city  in  the  whole  Hellenic  world. 

Dionysius  was  also  a  patron  of  literature  and  philosophy. 
Plato  was  for  a  time  a  guest  at  his  court ;  but  the  views  of  the 
philosopher,  or  his  way  of  presenting  them,  seem  to  have  been 
displeasing  to  the  tyrant,  who  caused  him  to  be  sold  as  a  slave, 
from  which  condition  he  was  ransomed  by  a  friend.  Dionysius 
was  himself  a  poet  of  no  mean  ability,- and  composed  a  tragedy 


Fig.  35.     COIN    OF   SYRACUSE. 

entitled  the  Ransom  of  Hector,  to  which  the  Athenians  awarded 
the  first  prize  at  the  Dionysiac  festival. 

The  tyrant  particularly  aspired  to  be  the  recipient  of  the  honors 
and  prizes  awarded  at  the  great  festivals  at  Olympia.  He  wrote 
poems  to  be  recited  to  the  crowds  that  gathered  there,  and  sent 
chariots  to  run  in  the  races.  In  the  year  384  B.C.  he  sent  an 
unusually  magnificent  embassy  to  represent  him  at  the  games. 
His  ambassadors  at  this  time  were  insulted,  and  were  even 
threatened  with  personal  violence  by  the  people.  Various  cir- 
cumstances contributed  to  the  vehemence  of  the  feelings  of  the 
Olympian  visitors  against  Dionysius.  There  was  the  general 
abhorrence  of  tyrants  ingrained  in  the  Greek  mind.     And  there 


424  THE    GREEKS   OF   WESTERN  HELLAS. 

was  the  special  enormity  of  the  crimes  of  the  Syracusan  despot 
against  Greek  freedom,  witnessed  to  by  the  crowds  of  exiles, 
the  victims  of  his  unbearable  tyranny,  who  filled  the  cities  of 
Eastern  Hellas.  Besides  all  this,  the  critical  condition  at  large 
of  the  Greek  world  at  just  this  moment  created  a  special  sensi- 
tiveness to  Panhellenic  sentiment  in  all  generous  and  large- 
minded  Greeks.  It  was  only  three  years  before  this  Olympic 
festival  that  the  disgraceful  Peace  of  Antalcidas  had  abandoned 
the  Greeks  of  Asia  to  the  Persian  king  (p.  404).  And  now  the 
freedom  of  the  Western  Greeks  had  been  extinguished  by  the 
tyrant  of  Syracuse.  The  seriousness  of  the  situation  was  vividly 
pictured  by  the  great  orator  Lycias,  who,  in  denouncing  the  tyrant 
to  the  crowds  at  Olympia,  exclaimed,  "The  Hellenic  world  is 
on  fire  at  both  ends."  It  did  seem  as  if  Grecian  freedom  was 
about  to  utterly  perish  —  and  that,  too,  at  the  hands  of  her  own 
unworthy  children. 

The  object  of  universal  detestation,  Dionysius  carried  his  life 
in  his  hands.  The  state  of  constant  apprehension  in  which 
he  lived  is  illustrated  by  the  story  of  the  Sword  of  Damocles. 
A  courtier  named  Damocles  having  expressed  to  Dionysius  the 
opinion  that  he  must  be  supremely  happy,  the  tyrant  invited  him 
to  a  sumptuous  banquet,  assigning  to  him  his  own  place  at  the 
board.  When  the  courtier  was  in  the  midst  of  the  enjoyments 
of  the  table,  Dionysius  bade  him  look  up.  Turning  his  eyes 
towards  the  ceiling,  Damocles  was  horrified  at  the  sight  of  a 
sword,  suspended  by  a  single  hair,  dangling  above  his  head. 
"Such,"  observed  Dionysius,  "is  the  life  of  a  tyrant." 

The  Damoclean  sword  did  not  fall  during  the  lifetime  of 
Dionysius.  He  ended  his  life  by  a  natural  death,  and  transmitted 
his  power  to  his  son,  who  ascended  the  throne  as  Dionysius 
the  Younger. 

Dionysius  the  Younger.  (367-343  b.c).  —  The  young  Dio- 
nysius lacked  the  ability  of  his  father  to  play  the  tyrant,  and 
left  the  government  at  first  very  largely  in  the  hands  of  his 
father-in-law,  Dion,  a  man  of  philosophic  tastes,  and  in  some 


DIONYSIUS   THE    YOUNGER,  425 

respects  a  dreamer.  Through  his  influence  Plato  was  once  more 
brought  to  Syracuse,  and  introduced  to  Dionysius.  The  philoso- 
pher urged  the  despot  to  change  his  tyranny  into  a  regulated 
monarchy,  and  to  give  freedom  to  the  cities  of  his  empire.  For 
a  time  the  tyrant  seemed  to  yield  to  the  influence  of  his  teacher, 
but  very  soon  the  breath  of  calumny  poisoned  his  mind  against 
both  Dion  and  Plato,  the  former  of  whom  he  was  made  to  believe 
was  plotting  to  undermine  his  power.  Dion  was  exiled;  Plato 
was  permitted  to  return  to  Greece. 

Freed  from  the  restraints  of  philosophy,  Dionysius  plunged 
into  reckless  dissipation,  and  began  to  exhibit  the  more  ignoble 
traits  of  his  character.  The  general  detestation  of  the  despot 
created  by  his  course  enabled  Dion  to  bring  his  rule  to  an  end. 
Returning  from  exile  with  a  small  force,  at  a  moment  when  the 
tyrant  happened  to  be  away  in  Italy,  Dion  was  received  by  the 
people  with  acclamation  as  their  deliverer.  When  Dionysius 
returned  from  Italy,  he  discovered  himself  shut  out  from  his  own 
capital.  Only  the  island  of  Ortygia  was  held  for  him.  Leaving 
a  garrison  to  maintain  this  stronghold,  Dionysius  sailed  away 
to  Locri  in  Italy  (356  B.C.).  Shortly  after  his  departure  Ortygia 
surrendered  into  the  hands  of  Dion. 

Dion,  notwithstanding  all  the  wise  instruction  in  the  science  of 
government  which  he  had  received  from  his  tutor  Plato,  failed 
utterly  in  the  administration  of  affairs.  He  did  not  restore  free- 
dom to  the  people,  but  gave  them  reason  to  suspect  that  he 
purposed  to  set  up  a  tyranny.  This  suspicion  soon  ripened  into 
a  conspiracy  against  him,  and  he  was  finally  assassinated  (353  B.C.). 

Taking  advantage  of  the  anarchy  which  followed  the  murder  of 
Dion,  Dionysius  returned  to  Syracuse  and  succeeded  in  recover- 
ing his  lost  throne  (346  B.C.).  But  most  of  the  Sicilian  Greek 
cities  which  had  been  subject  to  him  had,  during  the  troublous 
period,  broken  away  from  the  Dionysian  empire,  and  were  now 
living  each  under  its  own  despot.  The  Carthaginians  were  once 
more  disturbing  the  island.  Everything  was  in  confusion,  and 
distress  among  the  people  was  universal. 


426  THE    GREEKS    OF   WESTERN  HELLAS. 

Timoleon  the  Liberator  (344-336  b.c.)  :  the  Golden  Era  of 
the  Sicilian  Greek  Cities.  —  Under  the  stress  of  these  circum- 
stances the  Syracusans  sent  an  embassy  to  Corinth,  their  mother 
city,  for  help,  to  enable  them  to  free  themselves  from  the  tyrant 
Dionysius.  The  Corinthians  listened  favorably  to  the  appeal,  and 
sent  to  the  succor  of  the  Syracusans  a  small  force  under  the  lead 
of  Timoleon,  a  man  who  at  home  had  shown  his  love  for  liberty 
by  consenting  to  the  death  of  his  own  brother  when  he  attempted 
to  make  himself  tyrant  of  Corinth. 

Timoleon,  sailing  to  Syracuse,  found  the  tyrant  already  hard- 
pressed  by  his  enemies  in  Ortygia.  His  arrival  determined 
Dionysius  to  surrender  the  stronghold.  The  only  condition  that 
he  asked  was  that  he  should  be  allowed  to  retire  to  Corinth  with 
his  movable  property,  under  a  guarantee  of  personal  safety.  In 
that  city  the  tyrant  passed  the  remainder  of  his  life,  filling  a  part 
of  his  enforced  leisure  by  giving  instruction  in  reading  and  music. 

Having  freed  Syracuse  from  her  tyrant,  Timoleon  next  engaged 
in  fight  with  the  Carthaginians,  who  were  once  more  intent  upon 
the  conquest  of  Sicily.  At  the  Crimisus  River,  with  a  force  of 
less  than  twelve  thousand,  he  inflicted  upon  a  vast  barbarian 
army,  numbering  seventy  thousand  men,  gathered  from  all  the 
barbarian  countries  of  the  West,  —  Libya,  Numidia,  Iberia,  and 
Italy,  —  a  defeat  as  complete  and  memorable  as  that  which  the 
same  enemy  had  received  two  generations  before  at  the  hands  of 
Gelo  on  the  field  of  Himera  (p.  419).  Two  hundred  chariots,  a 
thousand  breastplates,  and  ten  thousand  shields  were  a  part  of  the 
spoils  of  the  battle-field  (about  340  b.c). 

At  the  same  time  that  Timoleon  was  engaging  the  barbarians, 
he  was  giving  attention  to  the  despots  who  were  holding  in  slavery 
the  various  Greek  towns  of  the  island.  These  he  expelled,  and 
restored  freedom  to  the  cities  which  they  had  been  ruling.  To 
Syracuse  he  gave  a  popular  form  of  government,  and,  as  a  sign 
that  the  Dionysian  tyranny  had  come  to  a  final  end,  caused  the 
stronghold  of  the  despots  on  the  island  of  Ortygia  to  be  razed  to  the 
ground,  and  buildings  for  courts  of  justice  to  be  erected  on  the  spot. 


TIM  OLE  ON   THE  LIBERATOR.  427 

Syracuse  and  the  other  Sicilian  Greek  cities  now  entered  upon 
the  golden  era  of  their  history.  The  desolation  that  reigned 
throughout  Sicily  when  Timoleon  first  entered  the  island  can 
with  difficulty  be  pictured.  Plutarch  tells  us  that  cattle  and 
horses  were  pastured  in  the  streets  and  market-places  of  the 
once  populous  cities,  while  deer  and  other  wild  animals  were 
hunted  in  the  deserted  suburbs.  A  few  years  before  Timoleon 
embarked  on  his  expedition,  Plato  had  expressed  a  fear  that  the 
Hellenic  race  would  become,  extinct  in  Sicily. 

Under  the  reign  of  liberty  and  order  instituted  by  Timoleon, 
the  empty  cities  began  to  fill  with  inhabitants.  Exiles  flocked 
back  from  all  quarters.  Corinth,  mindful  that  Syracuse  was  her 
own  daughter  colony,  gathered  from  all  parts  of  Eastern  Hellas 
colonists  for  the  repeophng  of  the  city.  At  one  time  ten  thou- 
sand emigrants  sailed  together  for  Sicily.  Syracuse  is  said  to 
have  received  not  less  than  sixty  thousand  immigrants.  The 
ruined  or  half-decayed  cities  throughout  the  island  were  recolo- 
nized.  This  great  influx  of  population,  and  the  new  and  un- 
wonted courage  and  energy  infused  into  the  people  by  the 
beneficent  measures  of  Timoleon,  brought  to  Hellenic  Sicily  a 
period  of  remarkable  expansion  and  prosperity. 

With  his  great  work  of  freeing  and  repeopling  Sicily  accom- 
plished, Timoleon  resigned  his  authority,  and  retired  to  private 
life.  He  remained  at  Syracuse,  being  the  object  of  an  almost 
idolatrous  affection  and  devotion  on  the  part  of  the  people  for 
whom  he  had  done  so  much.  As  he  advanced  in  years,  his  eye- 
sight failed,  and  he  finally  became  totally  blind.  Yet  it  was  to 
him  that  the  Syracusans  still  turned  for  counsel  in  all  emergencies 
of  state.  Whenever  a  matter  of  great  moment  was  under  discus- 
sion in  the  general  assembly,  he  was  drawn  in  a  car  into  the 
theatre,  where  the  meeting  was  in.  progress,  and  the  advice  which 
he  on  such  occasions  proffered  was  almost  invariably  acted  upon. 
He  died  in  the  year  336  B.C.,  loved  and  revered  by  all  the  Sicilian 
Greeks  as  their  Hberator  and  benefactor.^ 

1  Plut.  Timoleon. 


428  THE    GREEKS   OF    WESTERN  HELLAS. 

The  Later  Fortunes  of  the  Greek  Cities  of  Sicily  and  Magna 
Graecia.  —  The  golden  age  of  the  Grecian  cities  of  the  West  came 
to  an  end  shordy  after  the  death  of  Timoleon.  In  the  year  316 
B.C.,  the  noted  Agathocles  made  himself  tyrant  of  Syracuse.  He 
reigned  for  twenty-eight  years.  After  his  death  a  period  of  dis- 
cord followed,  and  then  the  government  fell  into  the  hands  of 
another  celebrated  tyrant,  Hiero  II.  (about  270-216  B.C.),  who 
became  the  firm  ally  of  Rome  in  her  struggle  with  Carthage. 
Soon  after  the  death  of  Hiero,  as  a  punishment  for  its  having 
forsaken  the  Roman  for  a  Carthaginian  alliance,  the  Romans 
extinguished  the  independence  of  the  city,  and  made  it  a  part 
of  their  empire  (212  B.C.). 

The  Italian  cities,  which  had  regained  their  independence  at 
the  time  that  Timoleon  destroyed  the  power  of  the  Dionysian 
dynasty,  were  many  of  them  soon  afterwards  conquered  by  the 
native  Italian  tribes.  But  some  of  the  leading  cities  of  the  coast 
—  Rhegium,  Locri,  Croton,  and  Tarentum  —  managed,  with  the 
aid  of  Sparta  and  the  rulers  of  Epirus,  to  beat  off  the  enemy,  and 
to  retain  their  freedom,  until  the  rise  of  the  power  of  Rome, 
by  which  city  they  were  all  finally  conquered  and  absorbed. 
Tarentum  was  the  last  to  yield  to  the  growing  power  of  the  im- 
perial city  (in  272  B.C.). 

Having  made  this  hasty  review  of  the  course  of  events  in  West- 
ern Hellas,  we  must  now  return  to  Greece  proper,  in  order  to 
trace  further  the  fortunes  of  the  cities  of  the  home  land. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Lives  of  Timoleon  and  Dion.  Grote,  History  of 
Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  viii,  pp.  366-495;  ib.  vol.  ix.  pp.  1-194;  (twelve 
volume  ed.),  vol.  x.  pp.  383-512;  ib.  vol.  xi.  pp.  1-197.  Freeman,  The  Story 
of  Sicily  (Story  of  the  Nations) . 


THE  MACEDONIANS  AND    THEIR  RULERS.  429 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

THE   RISE   OF   MACEDONIA:    REIGN   OF   PHILIP   11. 

(359-336  B.C.) 

The  Macedonians  and  their  Rulers.  —  We  have  reached  now 
the  threshold  of  a  new  era  in  Grecian  history.  A  state,  hitherto 
but  httle  observed,  at  this  time  rOse  suddenly  into  prominence  and 
began  to  play  a  leading  part  in  Greek  affairs.  This  state  was 
Macedonia,  a  country  lying  north  of  the  Cambunian  mountains 
and  back  of  the  Chalcidian  promontories.  In  the  present  chap- 
ter we  shall  sketch  briefly  the  rise  of  this  new  power  in  the  North, 
and  tell  how  before  its  growing  might  first  the  Greek  cities  on 
the  northern  shore  of  the  ^^gean  and  then  those  of  Greece  proper 
were  overwhelmed,  and  the  days  of  Greek  liberty  brought  to  an 
end. 

The  peoples  of  Macedonia  were  for  the  most  part  mountaineers, 
who  had  not  yet  passed  beyond  the  tribal  state.^  They  were  a 
hardy  war-like  race,  possessing  the  habits  and  the  virtues  of  coun- 
try people.  They  were  Aryans  and  close  kindred  to  the  Hellenes, 
but  since  they  did  not  speak  pure  Greek  and  were  backward  in 
culture,  they  were  looked  upon  as  barbarians  by  their  more  refined 
city  kinsmen  of  the  South. 

The  ruling  race  in  the  country,  however,  were  of  Hellenic  stock. 
They  claimed  to  be  descended  from  the  royal  house  of  Argos,  and 
this  claim  had  been  allowed  by  the  Greeks,  who  had  permitted 
them  to  appear  as  contestants  in  the  Olympian  games,  —  a  privi- 

1  There  were,  however,  a  few  towns  in  Macedonia,  of  which  ^gae  and  Pella, 
each  of  which  was  in  turn  the  seat  of  the  royal  court,  were  of  chief  note. 


430  THE  RISE    OF  MACEDONIA. 

lege,  it  will  be  recalled,  accorded  only  to  those  who  could  prove 
pure  Hellenic  ancestry.  The  government  maintained  by  these 
Hellenic  or  serni-Hellenic  rulers  was  a  sort  of  limited  monarchy, 
somewhat  like  that  existing  among  the  Greeks  in  the  Heroic  Age. 
Their  efforts  to  spread  Greek  art  and  culture  among  their  subjects, 
combined  with  intercourse  with  the  Greek  cities  of  Chalcidice,  had 
resulted  in  the  native  barbarism  of  the  Macedonian  tribes  being 
overlaid  with  a  thin  veneer  of  Hellenic  civilization. 

The  Youth  of  Philip  of  Macedon.  —  Macedonia  first  rose  to 
importance  during  the  reign  of  Philip  II.  (359-336  B.C.),  gener- 
ally known  as  Philip  of  Macedon.  He  was  a  man  of  pre-emi- 
nent ability,  of  wonderful  address  in  diplomacy,  and  of  rare  genius 
as  an  organizer  and  military  chieftain. 

Several  years  of  Philip's  boyhood  were  passed  by  him  as  a  host- 
age at  Thebes  (p.  415).  This  episode  in  the  life  of  the  prince  had 
a  marked  influence  upon  his  after-career;  for  just  at  this  time 
Epaminondas  was  the  leading  spirit  among  the  Thebans,  and  in 
the  companionship  of  this  consummate  military  tactician  and  com- 
mander it  was  that  Philip  learned  valuable  lessons  in  the  art  of 
war.  The  Macedonian  phalanx^  which  Philip  is  said  to  have 
originated,  and  which  holds  some  such  place  in  the  military  history 
of  Macedonia  as  the  legion  holds  in  that  of  Rome,  was  simply  a 
modification  of  the  Theban  phalanx  that  won  the  day  at  Leuctra 
and  again  at  Mantinea. 

Nor  was  this  all.  Besides  the  knowledge  which  he  acquired  of 
miHtary  affairs,  the  quick  and  observant  boy  gained  during  his  en- 
forced residence  at  Thebes  an  insight  into  Greek  character  and 
Greek  politics  which  served  him  well  in  his  later  diplomatic  deal- 
ings with  the  Greek  cities. 

In  view  of  the  influence  which  the  lessons  and  experiences  of 
this  period  of  exile  exerted  upon  the  activities  and  policies  of 
Philip's  maturer  years,  it  has  been  well  likened  to  the  voluntary 
exile  in  Western  Europe  of  the  youthful  Tzar  Peter.  The  "  new 
ideas "  and  the  new  ambitions  which  both  carried  back  home 
marked  the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  the  history  of  their  respec- 


PHILIP  EXTENDS  HIS  DOMINIONS.  431 

tive  countries.^  There  is,  indeed,  a  very  striking  parallel  in  many 
respects  between  the  career  of  PhiHp  of  Macedon  and  that  of 
Peter  the  Great  of  Russia. 

The  death  of  his  father  Perdiccas  brought  Philip  to  the  Mace- 
donian throne  in  the  year  359  B.C.  With  affairs  settled  at  home 
and  his  kingdom  consoHdated,  the  ambition  of  the  youthful  king 
led  him  to  endeavor  to  subject  to  his  authority  the  Grecian  cities. 
He  worked  towards  this  end  not  so  much  through  the  employment 
of  open  force  as  through  intrigue,  bribery,  and  artful  diplomacy. 
In  the  use  of  these  weapons  he  could  have  given  instruction  to 
the  crafty  Themistocles. 

Philip  extends  his  Dominions  in  Chalcidice  and  Thrace. — 
Philip's  first  encroachments  upon  Greek  territory  were  made  in 
the  Chalcidian  region.  He  coveted  particularly  the  possession  of 
Amphipolis,  which  was  the  gateway  from  Macedonia  into  Thrace. 
This  city  had  been  founded  by  the  Athenians,  and  at  one  time 
formed  a  part  of  their  great  empire.  But  in  the  early  years  of  the 
Peloponnesian  War  it  had  been  set  free  by  the  Spartan  Brasidas 
(p.  323),  and  since  then  had  maintained  its  independence,  notwith- 
standing that  the  Athenians  had  made  repeated  efforts  to  resubju- 
gate  it.  The  Olynthians  also  were  interested  in  the  town,  since 
they  wished  to  include  it  in  the  new  Chalcidian  confederacy  of 
which  they  were  the  head. 

Consequently  both  Athens  and  Olynthus  were  unwilling  that  the 
city  should  fall  into  the  hands  of  Philip,  and  were  on  the  point  of 
joining  their  forces  in  order  to  thwart  his  designs  upon  the  place, 
but  were  kept  from  doing  so  by  the  lying  promises  made  secretly 
by  him  to  each  of  them.  Being  left  unopposed  in  his  operations, 
Philip  easily  made  prize  of  the  city  (358  B.C.). 

Philip  next  captured  the  important  city  of  Pydna,  on  the  Ther- 
maic  Gulf.  Afterwards  he  wrested  Potidsea  from  Athens,  and  just 
to  create  enmity  between  the  Athenians  and  the  Olynthians,  possi- 
ble allies  against  him,  gave  the  city  to  the  latter. 

The  western  portions  of  Thrace  were  next  conquered  by  Philip 

iSee  Curteis,  Rise  of  the  Macedonian  Empire,  p.  23. 


432  THE  RISE    OF  MACEDONIA. 

and  added  to  his  growing  dominions.  In  this  quarter  he  founded 
the  well-known  city  of  Philippi.^  His  Thracian  conquests  gave 
Philip  control  of  the  rich  gold  mines  of  this  region,  and  furnished 
him  with  the  means  which  he  later  so  freely  used  to  corrupt  and 
bribe  the  leaders  of  the  Grecian  cities. 

Revolt  against  Athens  of  her  Allies:  the  Social  War  (357- 
355  B.C.).  —  One  reason  why  Athens  had  remained  so  inactive 
while  the  Macedonian  power  was  making  such  dangerous  advances 
on  the  Thracian  shore  was  her  preoccupation  with  affairs  nearer 
home.  In  the  very  midst  of  Philip's  operations,  several  of  the 
most  powerful  of  the  members  of  the  new  Athenian  confederacy 
(p.  407)  had  risen  against  the  x\thenians,  who,  forgetful  of  all  the 
severe  lessons  of  the  past,  were  attempting  to  play  the  tyrant 
in  the  new  league,  just  as  they  had  done  in  the  old  Delian 
confederacy. 

This  struggle  between  Athens  and  her  allies  is  known  as  the 
Social  War  ^  (357-355  B.C.).  A  threat  on  the  part  of  the  Persian 
king  to  enter  the  war  on  the  side  of  the  revolted  cities  constrained 
the  Athenians  to  agree  to  a  peace  which  left  their  former  allies, 
Chios,  Rhodes,  Cos,  and  Byzantium,  free  and  independent  states. 
Thus  at  this  critical  moment  in  the  history  of  the  Grecian  cities 
was  fatally  impaired  the  strength  of  the  only  league  which  could 
hope  to  offer  effective  resistance  to  the  encroachments  upon 
Hellenic  territory  of  the  semi-barbarian  power  rising  in  the 
North. 

Demosthenes  and  his  Olynthiac  Orations :  Philip  destroys 
Olynthus  and  Other  Chalcidian  Cities  (348  b.c).  —  The  Athe- 
nian orator  Demosthenes  was  one  of  the  few  who  seemed  to 
understand  the  real  designs  of  Philip.  His  penetration,  like  that 
of  Pericles,  descried  a  cloud  lowering  over  Greece  —  this  time  from 

1  Philippi  was  the  first  European  city  in  which  the  Gospel  was  preached.  The 
preacher  was  the  Apostle  Paul,  who  went  over  from  Asia  in  obedience  to  the  vision 
in  which  a  man  of  Macedonia  seemed  to  stand  and  pray,  "  Come  over  into  Mace- 
donia, and  help  us." 

2  One  of  the  most  noted  Athenian  generals  at  this  time  was  Chabrias.  He  was 
killed  in  the  fighting  on  the  island  of  Chios. 


DEMOSTHENES  AND  HIS   OLYNTHIAC   ORATIONS.     433 


the  North.  With  all  the  persuasion  of  his  wonderful  eloquence, 
he  strove  to  stir  up  the  Athenians  to  resist  the  encroachments  of 
the  king  of  Macedon.  He  hurled  against  him  his  famous  Phi- 
lippics, speeches  so  filled  with  fierce  denunciation  that  they  have 
given  name  to  all  writings  char- 
acterized by  bitter  criticism  or 
violent  invective. 

Demosthenes  was  opposed  in 
his  war  policy  by  a  considerable 
peace  party  at  Athens,  among  the 
leaders  of  which  were  Phocion 
and  ^schines.  Phocion  was  an 
upright  and  incorruptible  man, 
and  an  able  and  trusted  general, 
who  opposed  Demosthenes  for 
the  reason  that  he  thought  the 
interests  of  Athens  would  be  best 
served  through  the  maintenance 
of  friendly  relations  with  Mace- 
donia, ^schines  was  a  gifted 
orator,  who,  without  doubt  cor- 
rupted by  Macedonian  gold, 
traitorously  used  his  influence 
at  Athens  to  promote  the  plans 
of  Phihp. 

The  field  of  Philip's  aggres- 
sions at  just  this  time  was  the 
Chalcidian  peninsula.  He  was 
intent  upon  the  destruction  of 
Olynthus  and  her  confederacy. 
Demosthenes,  as  we  have  in- 
timated, appears  to  have  been  almost  the  only  man  at  Athens  who 
recognized  the  significance  of  the  struggle  on  the  Thracian 
shore.  He  saw  clearly  that  the  fall  of  the  Greek  cities  there 
meant  the  fall,  sooner  or  later,  of  the  cities  of  continental  Greece. 


DEMOSTHENES. 


434  THE  RISE    OF  MACEDONIA. 

In  three  speeches,  known  as  the  Olynthiac  orations,  he  strove 
to  arouse  his  countrymen  to  a  sense  of  the  imminency  of  the 
danger  which  was  threatening.  The  burden  of  the  three  orations 
was,  It  is  better  for  us  to  fight  Philip  in  Chalcidice  than  in  Attica. 
If  PhiHp  takes  Olynthus,  he  will  soon  be  here.  The  speeches  are 
filled  with  complaining  comparisons  between  the  alert  and  pat- 
riotic spirit  evinced  by  the  Athenians  in  earlier  times  when  the 
Persians  were  at  the  gates  of  Greece,  and  the  languid,  pusil- 
lanimous temper  of  the  citizens  now  when  the  Macedonian  were 
threatening  the  northern  passes  of  the  land.  In  the  second  speech, 
the  orator  endeavors  to  encourage  the  Athenians  to  action  by 
showing  that  Philip's  power  v/as  rather  apparent  than  real.  "  It 
is  impossible,"  he  says,  "to  build  up  an  empire  by  injustice,  perjury, 
and  falsehood." 

The  eloquence  of  Demosthenes  was  all  in  vain.  The  Athenians 
could  not  be  stirred  to  timely  and  effective  action.  Olynthus  fell 
into  the  hands  of  Philip  (348  b.c),  and  with  it  all  the  other  cities 
of  the  Chalcidian  confederacy,  thirty-two  in  all.  Many  of  the 
towns  were  destroyed  and  a  great  part  of  their  inhabitants  sold 
into  slavery. 

Philip  and  the  Second  Sacred  War  (355-346  b.c).  —  Up  to  this 
time  Philip  had  not  come  directly  in  contact  with  the  states  of 
Greece  proper.  But  shortly  after  he  had  added  the  Chalcidian 
lands  to  his  empire,  he  acquired  in  the  following  way  a  voice  and 
vote  in  the  affairs  of  the  cities  of  continental  Greece. 

The  Phocians  had  put  to  secular  use  some  of  the  lands  which, 
at  the  end  of  the  First  Sacred  War  (p.  54),  had  been  conse- 
crated to  the  Delphian  Apollo.  Taken  to  task  and  heavily  fined 
for  this  act  by  the  other  members  of  the  Delphian  Amphictyony, 
the  Phocians  deliberately  robbed  the  temple,  and  used  the  treas- 
ure in  the  maintenance  of  a  large  force  of  mercenary  soldiers. 
Thus  they  were  enabled  to  hold  out  against  all  their  enemies, 
chief  among  whom  were  the  Thebans.  The  Amphictyons,  not 
being  able  to  punish  the  Phocians  for  their  impiety,  were  forced 
to  ask  help  of  Philip,  who  gladly  rendered  the  assistance  sought 


THE  BATTLE   OF  CII^ERONEA.  435 

The  first  campaign  of  Philip  against  the  Phocians  and  their 
alHes  miscarried.  After  having  gained  a  great  battle  in  Thessaly 
(352  B.C.),  he  marched  into  Central  Greece,  but  at  Thermopylae 
was  turned  back  by  the  Athenians,  who  were  holding  that  pass  in 
force.  Five  years  after  this,  however,  Philip,  having  through  the 
bribery  of  ^schines  and  other  Athenian  leaders  secured  the 
neutrality  of  Athens,  again  marched  southward  into  Central 
Greece.  The  Phocians  were  constrained  to  yield  to  superior 
force.  A  heavy  punishment  was  inflicted  upon  them  by  the 
Amphictyonic  council.  All  their  cities,  save  one,  were  broken  up 
into  villages,  and  the  inhabitants  were  forced  to  pay  a  large  annual 
tribute  to  the  Delphian  Apollo,  whom  they  had  robbed. 

The  place  which  the  Phocians  had  held  in  the  Delphian 
Amphictyony  was  given  to  Philip,  upon  whom  was  also  bestowed 
the  privilege  of  presiding,  in  connection  with  the  Thebans  and 
Thessalians,  at  the_  Pythian  games.  The  position  which  he  had 
now  secured  was  exactly  such  as  Philip  had  coveted,  since  he 
could  use  it  to  make  himself  master  of  all  Greece. 

Philip's  Attempt  to  seize  Byzantium  foiled  by  the  Athenians 
(339  B.C.).  —  A  little  later  Philip  was  with  his  army  in  Eastern 
Thrace,  warring  against  barbarians  and  Greeks  alike,  in  an  en- 
deavor to  extend  his  dominions  to  the  Hellespont  and  the  Bos- 
porus. Among  the  Greek  cities  in  this  quarter  to  which  he  laid 
siege  was  Byzantium.  The  Athenians,  however,  who  were  vitally 
interested  in  keeping  out  of  Philip's  hands  this  gateway  to  the 
Euxine,  since  they  drew  from  thence  their  supplies  of  corn,  aided 
the  Byzantines  in  the  defense  of  their  city,  and  Philip  was  forced 
to  raise  the  siege. 

The  Battle  of  Chaeronea  {^iZ^  b.c.)  .  — ^Though  Philip  had  failed  in 
his  attempt  to  reach  the  water-way  to  the  northern  world  through 
Thrace,  he  succeeded  in  reaching  it  through  Greece  proper. 
Soon  after  his  discomfiture  before  Byzantium,  he  brought  into 
dependence  upon  himself  the  cities  of  continental  Greece,  and 
thereby  also  secured  control  of  all  the  Greek  cities  on  the  Bos- 
porus and  the  Hellespont. 


436  THE  RISE    OF  MACEDONIA. 

The  circumstances  under  which  Phihp  attained  to  this  double 
aim  of  his  ambition  were  these  :  The  Amphictyons,  in  their  meeting 
for  the  year  339  B.C.,  instigated  by  the  Athenian  orator  ^schines, 
pronounced  the  Phocians  of  Amphissa  guilty  of  sacrilege  in  build- 
ing upon  and  cultivating  certain  lands  which  at  the  end  of  the 
Second  Sacred  War  had  been  dedicated  to  the  Delphian  Apollo, 
and  decreed  that  they  should  be  punished.  The  Locrians  resisted 
the  execution  of  the  sentence,  and  the  outcome  was  the  Third 
Sacred  War  {^ZZ^'ZZ^  B.C.).  As  in  the  earlier  struggle  between  the 
Amphictyons  and  the  Phocians  (p.  434),  Philip  was  now  called 
upon  to  chastise  the  offenders.  He  gladly  embraced  the  oppor- 
tunity thus  afforded  him  to  extend  and  strengthen  his  authority  in 
Greece.  Indeed,  it  seems  probable  that  ^schines,  working  in 
the  interest  of  Philip,  had  stirred  up  the  trouble  merely  to  create 
an  opportunity  for  him  to  intermeddle  in  Grecian  affairs. 

Philip  marched  his  army  into  Central  Greece ;  but  instead  of 
proceeding  at  once  to  mete  out  punishment  to  the  trespassers 
upon  the  holy  ground,  he  seized  and  began  to  fortify  Elatea,  a 
town  in  Phocis.  This  procedure  plainly  revealed  his  purpose  of 
invading  Attica  through  Boeotia.  When  the  news  of  his  move- 
ments were  carried  to  Athens,  the  city  was  thrown  into  a  state  of 
the  greatest  alarm  and  excitement.  A  meeting  of  the  Ecclesia 
was  hastily  summoned.  Demosthenes  was  the  only  man  who  had 
a  clear  line  of  action  to  recommend.  He  urged  that  the  city  be 
at  once  put  in  a  state  to  withstand  a  siege,  and  that  an  embassy 
be  sent  to  Thebes  to  solicit  an  alhance  with  Athens. 

All  that  Demosthenes  advised  was  done  by  the  Athenians. 
They  prepared  for  determined  resistance  behind  their  walls,  and 
sent  to  Thebes  an  embassy,  of  which  Demosthenes  was  the  most 
influential  member,  on  the  mission  proposed.  The  Thebans,  not- 
withstanding their  immemorial  hatred  of  the  Athenians,  were 
persuaded  by  Demosthenes  to  join  with  them  in  opposing  the 
progress  of  the  Macedonian  intruder. 

After  some  delay,  the  united  forces  of  Athens  and  Thebes, 
augmented  by  small  contingents  from  some  of  their  allies,  met 


THE    CONGRESS  AT   CORINTH.  437 

Philip  at  Chaeronea,  in  Boeotia.  The  battle  was  stubbornly  fought, 
but  finally  went  against  the  Athenians  and  their  allies,  who  were 
driven  from  the  field  with  heavy  loss.  The  Theban  Sacred  Band 
went  down  to  a  man  before  the  Macedonian  phalanx,  led  by  the 
youthful  Alexander,  the  son  of  Philip,  who  on  this  memorable  field 
began  his  great  career  as  a  commander. 

The  result  of  the  battle  was  the  subjugation  of  all  Greece  to  the 
authority  of  the  Macedonian  foreigner.  The  Athenians  were 
treated  leniently  by  Philip,  who  returned  to  them  without  ransom 
the  Athenian  prisoners  he  had  taken  ;  but  they  were  forced  to  give 
up  to  him  the  Thracian  Chersonese,  and  to  acknowledge  him  as 
chief  and  leader  of  the  Greeks.  The  Thebans  were  treated  with 
less  consideration.  An  end  was  put  to  their  authority  over  the 
smaller  Boeotian  towns,  and  a  Macedonian  garrison  was  placed  in 
their  citadel.  The  Spartans,  who  stubbornly  refused  to  acknowl- 
edge Philip's  suzerainty,  were  punished  by  being  stripped  of  much 
of  the  territory  they  still  retained,  which  was  given  to  neighboring 
states.  Byzantium  was  constrained  to  enter  into  a  treaty  with  the 
conqueror  which  gave  him  the  coveted  control  of  the  gateway  to 
the  Euxine. 

The  Congress  at  Corinth  :  Plan  to  invade  Asia  {^^  b.c).  — 
Soon  after  the  battle  of  Chaeronea,  Phihp  convened  at  Corinth  a 
council  of  the  Grecian  states.  All  were  represented  in  the 
congress,  save  Sparta.  At  this  meeting  was  adopted  a  constitution, 
drafted  by  Philip,  which  united  the  various  Grecian  cities  and 
Macedonia  into  a  sort  of  federation,  with  Macedonia  of  course  as 
the  leading  state.  Differences  arising  between  members  of  the 
federation  were  to  be  referred  for  settlement  to  the  Amphictyonic 
assembly. 

But  PhiHp's  main  object  in  caUing  the  congress  was  not  so  much 
to  promulgate  a  federal  constitution  for  the  Greek  cities,  as  to 
secure  their  aid  in  an  expedition  which  he  had  evidently  long  been 
meditating  for  the  conquest  of  the  Persian  empire.  The  exploit 
of  the  Ten  Thousand  Greeks  (p.  398)  had  made  manifest  the 
feasibility  of  such  an  undertaking  as  that   now   proposed.     The 


438  THE   RISE    OF  MACEDONIA. 

plan  was  endorsed  by  the  congress.  Every  Greek  city  was  to 
furnish  a  contingent  for  the  army  of  invasion.  Philip  was 
chosen  leader  of  the  expedition,  and  invested  with  what  was 
substantially  the  authority  of  a  dictator  over  the  war-forces  of 
Greece. 

All  Greece  was  now  astir  with  preparations  for  the  great  enter- 
prise. By  the  spring  of  the  year  336  B.C.  the  expedition  was  ready 
to  move,  and  the  advance  forces  had  already  crossed  over  into 
Asia,  when  Philip,  during  the  festivities  attending  the  marriage  of 
his  daughter,  was  assassinated  by  a  young  noble,  who  sought  thus 
to  avenge  a  personal  affront.  His  son  Alexander  succeeded  to  his 
place  and  power  (336  B.C.). 

Results  of  Philip's  Reign. — The  achievements  of  Phihp  made 
possible  the  greater  achievements  of  his  son.  He  paved  the 
way  for  Alexander's  remarkable  conquests  by  consolidating  the 
Macedonian  monarchy,  and  organizing  an  army  which  was 
the  most  effective  instrument  of  warfare  that  the  world  had  yet 
seen. 

But  the  most  important  outcome  of  Philip's  activity  and  policy 
was  the  union  of  the  Macedonian  monarchical  and  military 
system  with  Hellenic  culture.  This  was  the  historical  mission  of 
Philip.  Had  not  Hellenic  civilization  been  thus  incorporated  with 
the  Macedonian  system,  then  the  wide  conquests  of  Alexander 
would  have  resulted  in  no  more  good  for  humanity  than  those  of  a 
Tamerlane  or  a  Zinghis  Khan.  And,  on  the  other  hand,  Greek 
culture,  had  not  this  union  been  effected  by  Philip,  would  have 
remained  comparatively  isolated,  would  never  have  become 
so  widely  spread  as  it  did  among  the  peoples  and  races  of 
antiquity. 

In  the  words  of  the  historian  Ranke,  "  The  Greeks,  had  they 
remained  alone,  would  never  have  succeeded  in  winning  for  the 
intellectual  life  which  they  had  created  a  sure  footing  in  the  world 
at  large."  Greece  conquered  the  world  by  being  conquered.  It 
was  Hellenic  institutions,  customs,  and  manners,  Hellenic  language 
and  civilization,  which  the  extended  conquests  of  Alexander  spread 


RESULTS   OF  PHILIP'S  REIGN. 


439 


throughout  the  Eastern  world.     It  is  this  which  makes  the  short- 
hved  Macedonian  empire  so  important  a  factor  in  universal  history. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Lives  of  Demosthenes  and  Phocion.  Demos- 
thenes, Olynthiacs,  Philippics,  QXid.  the  Oration  on  the  Crozun.  Curteis,  The 
Macedonian  Empire  (Epoch  Series).  Curtius,  History  of  Greece,  vol.  v. 
Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  ix.  pp.  195-504;  (twelve 
volume  ed.),  vol.  xi.  pp.  197-522.  Mahaffy,  Problems  in  Greek  History,  ch. 
vii.,  "  Practical  Politics  in  the  Fourth  Century." 


Fig.  37.     COIN    OF   PHILIP    II.    OF   MACEDON. 


440  ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT. 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 

ALEXANDER  THE  GREAT. 

(336-323   B-C.) 

The  Youth  of  Alexander :  Beginnings  of  his  Reign.  —  Alex- 
ander was  only  twenty  years  of  age  when  he  came  to  his  father's 
throne.  Those  traits  of  temper  and  mind  which  marked  his 
manhood  and  which  fitted  him  to  play  so  great  a  part  in  history, 
were  foreshown  in  early  youth  —  if  we  may  believe  the  tales  that 
are  told  of  his  sayings  and  doings  as  a  boy.  The  Familiar  story 
of  the  vicious  steed  Bucephalus,  which  none  either  dared  to 
mount  or  to  approach,  but  which  was  subdued  in  a  moment 
by  the  skilful  handling  of  the  little  prince,  reveals  that  subtle 
magnetism  of  his  nature  by  which  he  acquired  such  wonderful 
influence  and  command  over  men  in  after  years.  The  spirit  of 
the  man  is  again  shown  in  the  complaint  of  the  boy  when  news 
of  his  father's  victories  came  to  him  :  "  Boys,"  said  he  to  his 
playmates,  "  my  father  will  get  ahead  of  us  in  everything,  and 
will  leave  nothing  great  for  you  or  me  to  do." 

Certain  influences  under  which  the  boy  came  in  his  earhest 
years  left  a  permanent  impression  upon  his  mind  and  character. 
By  his  mother  he  was  taught  to  trace  his  descent  from  the  great 
Achilles,  and  was  incited  to  emulate  his  exploits  and  to  make  him 
his  model  in  all  things.  The  Iliad,  which  recounts  the  deeds  of 
that  mythical  hero,  became  the  prince's  inseparable  companion. 
After  his  mother's  influence,  perhaps  that  of  the  philosopher 
Aristotle,  whom  Philip  persuaded  to  become  the  tutor  of  the 
youthful  Alexander,  was  the  most  potent  and    formative.      This 


TROUBLES  AT  ACCESSION  OF  ALEXANDER. 


441 


great  teacher  implanted  in  the  mind  of  the  young  prince  a  love 
of  Hterature  and  philosophy,  and  through  his  inspiring  companion- 
ship and  lofty  conversation  exercised  over  the  eager,  impulsive 
boy  an  influence  for  good  which  Alexander  himself  gratefully 
acknowledged  in  later  years. 

Troubles  attending  the  Accession  of  Alexander.  —  For  about 
two  years  after  his  accession  to  the  Macedonian  throne,  Alexander 
was  kept  busy  in 
thwarting  conspira- 
cies and  suppressing 
open  revolts  against 
his  authority.  The 
barbarian  tribes  on 
the  frontiers  of  Mace- 
donia were  restive 
under  the  yoke  which 
Philip  had  imposed 
upon  them,  while  the 
cities  of  Greece,  as 
yet  unaccustomed  to 
the  new  role  which 
they  were  expected 
to  play  as  dependents 
or  vassals  of  the 
Macedonian  king, 
were  ready  to*  seize 
the  first  favorable  opportunity  to  regain  their  lost  independence. 

The  death  of  Phihp  seemed  to  announce  the  opportune  moment. 
Straightway  movements  hostile  to  Macedonia  were  started  in  many 
of  the  Greek  cities  ;  but  Alexander's  alertness  prevented  these 
conspiracies  from  ripening  into  open  revolt.  With  a  large  army 
he  marched  quickly  into  Greece,  and  overcoming  all  opposition, 
forced  the  Greek  cities  to  acknowledge  his  suzerainty,  and  to 
invest  him  with  the  same  supreme  authority  as  commander-in-chief 
of  their  war-forces  that  they  had  conferred  upon  his  father. 


ALEXANDER   THE   GREAT. 


442  ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT. 

With  matters  composed  in  Greece  proper,  Alexander  returned 
to  Macedonia,  and  proceeded  to  reduce  to  order  the  tribes  on  his 
northern  frontier.  In  these  early  campaigns,  which  he  pushed  far 
into  the  northern  wilds,  he  performed  mihtary  exploits  that  cast 
into  the  shade  the  achievements  of  his  father  Philip.  His  pro- 
longed absence  from  Macedonia  gave  rise  in  Greece  to  a  report 
that  he  was  dead.  The  Thebans  rose  in  revolt,  and  called  upon 
the  Athenians  to  join  them.  Demosthenes  favored  the  appeal, 
and  began  to  stir  up  the  Athenians  and  others  to  unite  with  the 
Thebans  in  freeing  the  Grecian  land  from  the  foreigners. 

But  Alexander  was  not  dead.  Before  the  Greek  cities  had 
settled  upon  any  plan  of  concerted  action,  Alexander  with  his 
army  was  in  front  of  Thebes.  In  a  sharp  battle  outside  the 
gates  the  Thebans  were  defeated  and  their  city  was  captured. 
As  a  warning  to  the  other  Greek  towns,  Alexander  razed  the 
city  to  the  ground,  —  sparing,  however,  the  house  of  the  poet 
Pindar,  —  and  sold  thirty  thousand  of  the  inhabitants  into 
slavery.  The  Theban  lands  were  given  to  various  Boeotian  towns, 
the  old-time  enemies  of  Thebes.  Thus  was  one  of  the  largest 
and  most  renowned  of  the  cities  of  Greece  wiped  out  of 
existence. 

The  destruction  of  Thebes  produced  the  greatest  consternation 
throughout  Greece,  for  many  of  the  cities  were  implicated  in  the 
attempted  revolution  which  had  brought  that  city  to  ruin.  But 
having  meted  out  vengeance  to  Thebes,  Alexander  dealt  leniendy 
with  the  other  towns  that  had  by  public  decrees  or  otherwise 
expressed  hostility  to  him,  and  simply  insisted  upon  the  sur- 
render or  punishment  of  a  few  of  the  most  active  enemies  of 
Macedonia.  Demosthenes  was  one  of  the  Athenian  leaders 
whose  surrender  was  demanded ;  but  through  the  intercession 
of  Phocion,  who  was  held  in  special  regard  by  Alexander,  the 
orator  was  allowed  to  remain  unmolested  at  Athens. 

Alexander  crosses  the  Hellespont :  the  Battle  of  the  Granicus 
(334  B.C.). —  Alexander  was  now  free  to  carry  out  his  father's 
scheme  in  regard  to  the  Asiatic   expedition.     In   the   spring   of 


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Alexandria    N^  %     '  ^    * 

Alexandriai 


THE   ''GORDIAN  KNOT:'  443 

334  B.C.,  with  all  his  plans  matured,  he  set  out,  at  the  head  of  an 
army  numbering  about  thirty-five  thousand  men,  for  the  conquest 
of  the  Persian  empire.  The  sanguine  spirit  in  which  he  embarked 
in  this  vast  undertaking  is  shown  by  the  following  story.  On  the 
eve  of  his  departure  from  Macedonia,  he  is  said  to  have  divided 
among  his  friends  the  larger  part  of  the  royal  revenues.  Being 
asked  what  he  was  going  to  reserve  for  himself,  he  replied,  "  My 
hopes." 

Crossing  the  Hellespont,  Alexander  first  proceeded  to  the  plain 
of  ancient  Troy,  in  order  to  place  a  garland  upon  the  supposed 
tomb  at  that  place  of  his  mythical  ancestor  Achilles.  In  accord- 
ance with  an  old  custom,  he  ran  three  times  naked  round  the 
tumulus.  He  also  went  up  to  Troy  and  there  offered  sacrifice  to 
Athena. 

Proceeding  on  his  march,  Alexander  met  a  Persian  army  on  the 
banks  of  the  Granicus,  over  which  he  gained  a  decisive  victory. 
Three  hundred  suits  of  armor,  selected  from  the  spoils  of  the 
field,  were  sent  as  a  votive  offering  to  the  temple  of  Athena  at 
Athens. 

The  victory  at  the  Granicus  laid  all  Asia  Minor  open  to  the 
invader.  Almost  all  of  the  cities  of  the  western  coast  now  opened 
their  gates  without  opposition  to  the  conqueror ;  those  that  re- 
sisted were  quickly  reduced  to  submission.  The  provinces  of 
Caria,  Lycia,  and  Pamphylia,  in  the  south,  were  next  overrun, 
and  all  their  cities  and  tribes  brought  to  acknowledge  the  authority 
of  the  Macedonians. 

The  "Gordian  Knot."  —  From  Pamphyha  Alexander  marched 
northward  across  ice-covered  mountains,  into  Phrygia,  where  his 
army  was  joined  by  reinforcements  that  had  been  gathered  chiefly 
in  Macedonia  and  Greece.  At  the  ancient  capital  of  the  country, 
Gordium,  was  a  temple  of  Zeus,  where  was  to  be  seen  the  cele- 
brated "  Gordian  Knot."  Respecting  this  the  following  story  is 
told :  An  oracle  had  commanded  the  Phrygians,  in  a  time  of 
great  perplexity,  to  choose  as  their  king  the  first  person  who 
should   come    to  offer  sacrifice  to  Zeus.     The  peasant  Gordius 


444  ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT. 

was  the  one  whom  chance  designated.  He  was  riding  in  a 
wagon  when  the  people  proclaimed  him  king.^  Grateful  to  the 
gods  for  the  honor  that  had  fallen  upon  his  house,  Gordius  con- 
secrated the  wagon  as  a  memorial  in  the  temple  of  Zeus. 

It  was  gradually  spread  abroad  that  an  oracle  had  declared  that 
whoever  should  untie  the  skilfully  fastened  knot  which  united  the 
yoke  to  the  pole  of  the  chariot  should  become  master  of  Asia. 
Alexander  attempted  the  feat.  Unable  to  loosen  the  intricate 
knot,  he  drew  his  sword  and  cut  it.  Hence  the  phrase  "  cutting 
the  Gordian  knot,"  —  meaning  a  short  way  out  of  a  difficulty. 
The  marvellous  fulfilment  of  the  prediction  in  the  subsequent 
successes  of  Alexander  gave  new  faith  and  credit  to  the  oracle. 

The  Battle  of  Issus  i^2>Z2>  b.c).  —  At  the  northeast  corner  of  the 
Mediterranean  lies  the  plain  of  Issus.  Here  Alexander,  marching 
forward  from  Phrygia,  met  a  Persian  army,  numbering,  it  is  said, 
six  hundred  thousand  men.  The  battle  which  ensued  was  fought 
in  a  narrow  plain  between  the  mountains  and  the  sea,  where  the 
cramped  space  deprived  the  Persians  of  the  advantage  they  pos- 
sessed of  superiority  in  numbers,  and  resulted  in  their  overwhelm- 
ing defeat.  The  family  of  Darius,  including  his  mother,  wife,  and 
children,  fell  into  the  hands  of  Alexander ;  but  the  king  himself 
escaped  from  the  field,  and  hastened  to  his  capital,  Susa,  to  raise 
another  army  to  oppose  the  march  of  the  conqueror. 

Siege  of  Tyre  (332  b.c).  —  Before  penetrating  to  the  heart  of 
the  empire,  Alexander  turned  to  the  south,  in  order  to  effect  the 
subjugation  of  Phoenicia,  that  he  might  command  the  Phoenician 
fleets  and  prevent  their  being  used  either  to  sever  his  commu- 
nication with  Greece,  or  to  aid  revolts  in  the  cities  there  against 
his  authority.  The  island-city  of  Tyre,  after  a  memorable  siege, 
was  taken  by  means  of  a  mole,  or  causeway,  built  with  incredible 
labor  through  the  sea  to  the  city.  This  mole  was  constructed 
out  of  the  ruins  of  old  Tyre  and  the  forests  of  Lebanon.  It  still 
remains,  uniting  the  rock  with  the  mainland.     When  at  last,  with 

1  Some  accounts,  however,  say  that  it  was  his  son  Midas  —  who  was  with  his 
father  —  that  was  elevated  to  the  throne. 


SIEGE    OF   TYRE. 


445 


the  aid  of  the  Sidonian  fleet,  the  city  was  taken,  after  a  siege  of 
seven  months,  eight  thousand  of  the  inhabitants  were  slain,  and 
thirty  thousand  sold  into  slavery  —  a  terrible  warning  to  those 
cities  that  should  dare  to  close  their  gates  against  the    Mace- 


Fig.  39.     DARIUS   AT   THE    BATTLE   OF    ISSUS.     (From  a  mosaic  found  at   Pompeii    and 
supposed  to  be  a  copy  of  a  Greek  painting.) 


donian.     The  reduction  of  Tyre  has  been  considered  the  greatest 
military  achievement  of  Alexander. 

After  the  fall  of  Tyre,  the  cities  of  Palestine  and  Philistia,  with 
the  sole  exception  of  Gaza,  surrendered  at  once  to  the  conqueror. 
Gaza  resisted  stubbornly,  but  after  a  siege  of  three  months  was 


446  ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT. 

taken,  and  its  inhabitants  were  sold  as  slaves.  Batis,  the  brave 
defender  of  the  place,  was  fastened  by  Alexander  to  a  chariot, 
and  dragged  until  dead  round  the  walls  of  the  city.  This  was  in 
imitation  of  the  treatment  said  to  have  been  accorded  by  Achilles 
to  the  body  of  Hector. 

Alexander  in  Egypt.  —  With  the  cities  of  Phoenicia  and  the 
fleets  of  the  Mediterranean  subject  to  his  control,  Alexander 
easily  effected  the  reduction  of  Egypt.  The  Egyptians,  indeed, 
made  no  resistance  to  the  Macedonians,  but  wiUingly  exchanged 
masters. 

While  in  the  country,  Alexander  founded  at  one  of  the  mouths 
of  the  Nile  a  city  called  after  himself,  Alexandria.  Ranke  be- 
lieves this  to  have  been  the  "first  city  in  the  world,  after  the 
Peir£eus  at  Athens,  erected  expressly  for  purposes  of  commerce." 
The  city  became  the  meeting-place  of  the  East  and  the  West ; 
and  its  importance  through  many  centuries  attests  the  far-sighted 
wisdom  of  its  founder. 

A  less  worthy  enterprise  of  the  conqueror  was  his  expedition  to 
the  oasis  of  Siwah,  located  in  the  Libyan  desert,  where  were  a 
celebrated  temple  and  oracle  of  Zeus  Ammon.  To  gratify  his 
own  vanity,  as  well  as  to  impress  the  superstitious  barbarians, 
Alexander  desired  to  be  declared  of  celestial  descent.  The 
priests  of  the  temple,  in  accordance  with  the  wish  of  the  king, 
gave  out  that  the  oracle  pronounced  Alexander  to  be  the  son  of 
Zeus  Ammon,  and  the  destined  ruler  of  the  world. 

The  Battle  of  Arbela  (331  b.c).  —  From  Egypt  Alexander 
recommenced  his  march  towards  the  Persian  capital.  While  yet 
in  Phoenicia,  he  had  received  from  Darius  proposals  of  peace  and 
alliance.  The  Great  King  had  offered  a  large  ransom  for  his 
family,  and  a  surrender  of  all  the  provinces  of  his  empire  lying 
west  of  the  Euphrates,  but  Alexander  had  refused  to  make  peace 
even  on  such  terms. 

Marching  through  Syria,  Alexander  directed  his  course  eastward 
and  crossed  the  Euphrates  and  the  Tigris  without  opposition ;  but 
on  the  plains  of  Arbela,  not  far  from  the  ancient  Nineveh,  he  found 


ALEXANDER  AT  BABYLON.  447 

his  further  advance  disputed  by  Darius  with  an  immense  army, 
numbering,  if  we  may  rely  upon  our  authorities,  over  a  milHon 
men.  It  was  a  motley  host,  made  up  of  various  Asiatic  barbarians, 
together  with  a  large  number  of  Greek  mercenaries.  Elephants 
and  scythe-armed  chariots  stamped  an  Oriental  character  upon  the 
vast  array. 

The  army  of  Alexander  amounted  to  only  about  forty-seven 
thousand  foot  and  horse.  But  discipline  counted  for  more  than 
numbers.  In  the  battle  which  was  soon  joined,  the  charge  of  the 
Macedonian  cavalry  and  phalanx  proved  irresistible,  and  the  vast 
Persian  host  was  overthrown  with  enormous  slaughter  and  scattered 
in  flight.  Darius  fled  from  the  field,  as  he  had  done  at  Issus,  and 
sought  safety  behind  the  walls  of  the  Median  capital,  Ecbatana. 

The  battle  of  Arbela  was  one  of  the  decisive  combats  of  history. 
It  marked  the  end  of  the  long  struggle  between  the  East  and  the 
West,  between"  Persia  and  Greece,  and  prepared  the  way  for  the 
spread  of  Hellenic  civilization  over  all  Western  Asia. 

Alexander  at  Babylon,  Susa,  and  Persepolis.  —  From  the  field 
of  Arbela  Alexander  marched  south  to  Babylon,  which  opened  its 
gates  to  him  without  opposition.  To'  attach  the  Babylonians  to 
himself,  he  restored  the  temples  which  Xerxes  had  destroyed,  and 
offered  sacrifices  in  the  temple  of  Bel. 

Susa  was  next  entered  by  the  conqueror.  Here  he  seized  in- 
credible quantities  of  gold  and  silver  (^57,000,000,  it  is  said),  the 
treasure  of  the  Great  King.  He  also  found  here  and  sent  back 
to  Athens  the  bronze  statues  of  Harmodius  and  Aristogeiton  ^ 
(p.  118),  which  had  been  carried  off"  by  Xerxes  at  the  time  of  the 
invasion  of  Greece.  Centuries  afterwards  these  restored  statues 
were  to  be  seen  in  the  Ceramicus. 

From  Susa  Alexander's  march  was  next  directed  to  Persepolis, 
where  he  secured  a  treasure  more  than  twice  as  great  (^138,000,000 
according  to  some)  as  that  found  at  Susa.  Upon  Persepolis  Alex- 
ander wreaked  vengeance  for  all  Greece  had  suffered  at  the  hands 

1  So  Arrian,  iii.  16.  Other  authorities,  however,  make  it  to  have  been  some 
successor  of  Alexander  who  returned  the  statues. 


448  ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT. 

of  the  Persians.  Many  of  the  inhabitants  were  massacred,  and 
others  sold  into  slavery ;  while  the  palaces  of  the  Persian  kings 
were  given  to  the  flames.^ 

Alexander,  having  thus  overthrown  the  power  of  Darius,  now 
began  to  regard  himself,  not  only  as  his  conqueror,  but  as  his  suc- 
cessor, and  was  thus  looked  upon  by  the  Persians.  He  assumed 
the  pomp  and  state  of  an  Oriental  monarch,  and  required  the 
most  obsequious  homage  from  all  who  approached  him.  His 
Greek  and  Macedonian  companions,  unused  to  paying  such  servile 
adulation  to  their  king  or  leader,  were  much  displeased  at  Alex- 
ander's conduct,  and  from  this  time  on  to  his  death  intrigues  and 
conspiracies  were  being  constantly  formed  among  them  against 
his  power  and  life. 

The  Pursuit  and  Death  of  Darius.  —  From  Persepolis  Alexan- 
der set  out  in  pursuit  of  Darius,  who,  as  we  have  seen,  had  escaped 
from  the  field  at  Arbela  to  the  city  of  Ecbatana.  As  the  Mace- 
donians approached,  the  king  fled,  thinking  to  find  a  safe  retreat 
in  the  remote  northeastern  provinces  of  his  empire.  But  as 
Alexander  pressed  closely  after  the  fugitive,  one  of  the  attendants 
of  Darius,  a  general  named  Bessus,  treacherously  stabbed  his 
master,  and,  fleeing,  left  him  in  a  dying  state  by  the  wayside.  By 
the  time  Alexander  reached  the  spot,  the  king  was  dead.  Accord- 
ing to  Plutarch,  Alexander  caused  the  body  to  be  sent  to  the  aged 
mother  of  Darius,  in  imitation  of  the  surrender  by  Achilles  of  the 
body  of  Hector  to  his  father  Priam. 

Conquest  of  Bactria  and  Sogdiana  (329-328  b.c). — Urged  on 
by  an  uncontrollable  desire  to  possess  himself  of  the  most  remote 
countries  of  which  any  accounts  had  ever  reached  him,  Alexander, 
after  the  death  of  Darius,  led  his  army  towards  the  east,  and  after 
subduing  many  tribes  that  dwelt  about  the  southern  shore  of  the 
Caspian  Sea  and  among  the  mountainous  regions  of  what  is  now 
known  as  Afghanistan,  boldly  conducted  his  soldiers  over  the 
snowy  and  dangerous  passes  of  the  Hindu  Kush,  and  descended 
into  the  province  of  Bactria,  in  which  region  some  have  thought  to 

1  Read  Dryden's  Alexander's  Feast. 


CONQUESTS  IN  INDIA.  449 

find  the  early  home  of  the  ancestors  of  the  various  peoples  of  Aryan 
race.  Here  Bessus,  the  murderer  of  Darius,  had  set  up  a  king- 
dom, ruHng  as  the  successor  of  the  Achsemenidse.  This  kingdom 
was  soon  destroyed  by  Alexander,  and  Bessus  himself,  falling  into 
the  hands  of  the  conqueror,  was  put  to  an  ignominious  death. 
After  the  reduction  of  Bactria,  Alexander  subdued  the  tribes  of 
Sogdiana,  a  country  lying  still  farther  to  the  north.  One  of  his 
greatest  exploits  in  this  region,  was  the  capture  of  the  Sogdian 
rock.  Among  the  captives  was  a  beautiful  Bactrian  princess, 
Roxana  by  name,  who  became  the  bride  of  Alexander. 

Throughout  these  remote  regions  Alexander  founded  numerous 
cities,  several  of  which  bore  his  own  name.  One  of  them  is  said 
to  have  been  built,  wall  and  houses,  in  twenty  days.  These  new 
cities  were  peopled  with  captives,  and  by  those  veterans  who, 
because  of  fatigue  or  wounds,  were  no  longer  able  to  follow  the 
conqueror  in  his  swift  campaigns. 

Alexander's  stay  in  Sogdiana  w^s  saddened  by  his  murder  of 
his  dearest  friend  Cleitus,  who  had  saved  his  life  at  the  Granicus. 
Both  were  heated  with  wine  when  the  quarrel  arose  ;  after  the 
deed,  Alexander  was  overwhelmed  with  remorse.^ 

Conquests  in  India.  —  With  the  countries  north  of  the  Hindu 
Kush  subdued  and  settled,  Alexander  recrossed  the  mountains, 
and  led  his  army  down  into  the  rich  and  crowded  plains  of  India 
(327  B.C.).  Here  again  he  showed  himself  invincible,  and  re- 
ceived the  submission  of  many  of  the  native  princes  of  the 
country. 

The  most  formidable  resistance  encountered  by  the  Macedo- 
nians was  offered  by  a  strong  and  wealthy  king  named  Porus. 
Captured  at  last  and  brought  into  the  presence  of  Alexander,  his 
proud  answer  to  the  conqueror's  question  as  to  how  he  thought  he 
ought  to  be  treated  was,  "  In  a  kingly  way."     Alexander  gave  him 

1  The  Macedonian  kingdom  which  grew  out  of  the  conquests  of  Alexander  in 
Central  Asia,  lasted  for  about  two  centuries  after  his  death  ;  that  is,  these  Bactrian 
countries  were  ruled  by  Hellenic  princes  for  that  length  of  time.  Traditions  of  the 
conqueror  still  linger  in  the  land,  and  coins,  and  plate  with  subjects  from  classic 
mythology,  are  frequently  turned  up  at  the  present  day. 


450  ALEXANbkR    THE    GREAT. 

back  his  kingdom,  to  be  held,  however,  subject  to  the  Macedonian 
crown. 

Alexander's  desire  was  to  extend  his  conquests  to  the  Ganges, 
but  his  soldiers  began  to  murmur  because  of  the  length  and  hard- 
ness of  their  campaigns,  and  he  reluctantly  gave  up  the  under- 
taking. To  secure  the  conquests  already  made,  he  founded,  at 
different  points  in  the  valley  of  the  Indus,  Greek  towns  and  colo- 
nies. One  of  these  he  named  Alexandria,  after  himself;  another 
Bucephala,  in  memory  of  his  favorite  steed;  and  still  another 
Nicaea,  for  his  victories.  The  modern  museum  at  Lahore  con- 
tains many  reHcs  of  Greek  art,  dug  up  on  the  site  of  these  Mace- 
donian cities  and  camps. 

Rediscovery  of  the  Sea-route  from  the  Indus  to  the  Euphra- 
tes. —  It  was  Alexander's  next  care  to  bind  these  distant  con- 
quests in  the  East  to  those  in  the  West.  To  do  this,  it  was  of  the 
first  importance  to  establish  water-communication  between  India 
and  Babylonia.  Now,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  Greeks  had  no 
positive  knowledge  of  what  sea  the  Indus  emptied  into,  and  only 
a  vague  idea  that  there  was  a  water-way  from  the  Indus  to  the 
Euphrates.^  This  important  maritime  route,  once  known  to  the 
civilized  world,  had  been  lost,  and  needed  to  be  rediscovered. 

So  the  conqueror  Alexander  now  turned  explorer.  He  sailed 
down  the  Indus  to  the  head  of  the  delta,  where  he  founded  a 
city,  which  he  called  Alexandria.  This  was  to  be  to  the  trade 
of  India  what  Alexandria  upon  the  Nile  was  to  that  of  Egypt. 
With  this  new  commercial  city  established,  Alexander  sailed 
on  down  to  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  was  rejoiced  to  find 
himself  looking  out  upon  the  southern  ocean. 

He  now  dispatched  his  trusty  admiral  Nearchus,  with  a  con- 
siderable fleet,  to  explore  this  sea,  and  to  determine  whether 
it   communicated   with   the    Euphrates.      He   himself,   with   the 

1  According  to  Arrian,  when  Alexander  reached  the  Indus  he  at  first  thought 
that  he  had  struck  the  upper  course  of  the  Nile.  The  presence  in  the  river  of 
crocodiles  like  those  in  Egypt,  was  one  thing  that  led  him  to  this  conjecture. 
Anabasis  of  Alexander,  vi.  i. 


THE  PLANS   OF  ALEXANDER.  451 

larger  part  of  the  army,  marched  westward  along  the  coast. 
His  march  thus  lay  through  the  ancient  Gedrosia,  now  Belu- 
chistan,  a  region  frightful  with  burning  deserts,  amidst  which 
his  soldiers  endured  almost  incredible  privations  and  sufferings. 

After  a  trying  and  calamitous  march  of  over  two  months, 
Alexander,  with  the  survivors  of  his  army,  reached  Carmania. 
Here,  to  his  unbounded  joy,  he  was  joined  by  Nearchus,  who 
had  made  the  voyage  from  the  Indus  successTully,  and  thus 
"  rediscovered  one  of  the  most  important  maritime  routes  of  the 
world,"  the  knowledge  of  which,  among  the  Western  nations, 
was  never  again  to  be  lost. 

To  appropriately  celebrate  his  conquests  and  discoveries,  Alex- 
ander instituted  a  series  of  religious  festivals,  amidst  which  his 
soldiers  forgot  the  dangers  of  their  numberless  battles  and  the 
hardships  of  their  unparalleled  marches,  which  had  put  to  the  test 
every  power  of  human  endurance. 

And  well  might  these  veterans  glory  in  their  achievements.  ^  In 
a  few  years  they  had  conquered  half  the  world,  and  changed  the 
whole  course  of  history. 

The  Plans  of  Alexander :  the  Mutiny  at  Opis  (324  b.c).  — 
As  the  capital  of  his  vast  empire,  which  now  stretched  from  the 
Ionian  Sea  to  the  Indus,  Alexander  chose  the  ancient  Babylon, 
upon  the  Euphrates.  His  designs,  we  have  reason  to  believe, 
were  to  push  his  conquests  as  far  to  the  west  as  he  had  extended 
them  to  the  east.  Arabia,  Carthage,  Italy,  and  Spain  were  to 
be  added  to  his  already  vast  domains.  Indeed,  the  plans  of 
Alexander  embraced  nothing  less  than  the  union  and  Hellenizing 
of  the  world.  Not  only  were  the  peoples  of  Asia  and  Europe 
to  be  blended  by  means  of  colonies,  but  even  the  floras  of  the 
two  continents  were  to  be  intermingled  by  the  transplanting  of 
fruits  and  trees  from  one  continent  to  the  other.  Common  laws 
and  customs,  and  a  common  language,  were  to  unite  the  world 
into  one  great  family.  Intermarriages  were  to  blend  the  races. 
Alexander  himself  married  a  daughter  of  Darius  III.,  and  also 
another  of  Artaxerxes  Ochus ;  and  to  ten  thousand  of  his  soldiers, 


452  ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT. 

whom  he  encouraged  to  take  Asiatic  wives,  he  gave  magnificent 
gifts. 

Not  all  the  old  soldiers  of  Alexander  approved  of  his  plans 
and  measures,  particularly  since  in  these  magnificent  projects 
they  seemed  to  be  relegated  to  a  second  place.  His  Macedonian 
veterans  were  especially  greatly  displeased  that  he  should  enlist 
m  his  service  effeminate  Asiatics,  and  dress  and  equip  them 
in  the  Macedonian  fashion.  They  also  disapproved  of  Alexander's 
action  in  wearing  the  Persian  costume,  and  surrounding  himself 
with  Persian  attendants.  So  when  Alexander  proposed  to  send 
back  to  Macedonia  the  aged  and  the  maimed  among  his 
veterans,  the  soldiers  broke  out  in  open  mutiny.  Alexander 
caused  the  instigators  of  the  sedition  to  be  executed,  and  then 
made  to  the  mutinous  soldiers  a  speech  such  as  they  had  never 
listened  to  before.  He  recalled  to  their  minds  how  his  father 
Philip  had  found  them  vagabond  shepherds  tending  a  few  sheep 
on  the  mountain-sides  in  Macedonia,  and  had  made  them  con- 
querors and  rulers  of  all  Thrace  and  Greece ;  and  how  he  him- 
self had  made  them  conquerors  of  the  empire  of  the  Great 
King,  the  possessors  of  the  riches  of  the  world,  and  the  envied 
of  all  mankind.  He  called  them  to  witness  how  he  had  often 
watched  through  the  night  that  they  might .  sleep ;  how  he 
had  shared  with  them  the  fatigue  of  the  march  and  the  dangers 
of  the  battle,  declaring  that  the  front  part  of  his  body  was 
covered  with  scars  of  wounds  from  all  kinds  of  weapons  —  swords, 
arrows,  stones  and  other  missiles.  Having  thus  spoken  to  them, 
he  dismissed  them,  ordering  them  to  depart  at  once  for  their 
homes.^ 

By  these  words  the  mutinous  spirit  of  the  soldiers  was  com- 
pletely subdued,  and  with  every  expression  of  contrition  for  their 
fault  and  of  devotion  to  their  old  commander  they  begged  for 
forgiveness  and  reinstatement  in  his  favor.  Alexander  was  moved 
by  their  entreaties,  and  gave  them  assurances  that  they  were  once 
more  his  companions  and  kinsmen.     The  reconciliation  was  cele- 

1  Arrian,  vii.  9,  10. 


THE   DEATH   OE  ALEXANDER, 


453 


brated  by  a  magnificent  banquet  in  which  more  than  nine  thousand 
participated.^ 

The  Death  of  Alexander  (323  b.c).  —  In  the  midst  of  his  vast 
projects,  Alexander  was  seized  by  a  fever,  brought  on,  doubtless, 
by  his  insane  excesses,  and  died  at  Babylon,  323  b.c,  in  the  thirty- 
second  year  of  his  age.  His  soldiers  could  not  let  him  die  with- 
out seeing  him.  The  watchers  of  the  palace  were  obhged  to  open 
the  doors  to  them,  and  the 
veterans  of  a  hundred  battle- 
fields filed  sorrowfully  past  the 
couch  of  their  dying  com- 
mander. His  body  was  car- 
ried, first  to  Memphis,  but 
afterwards  to  .Alexandria,  in 
Egypt,  and  there  enclosed  in 
a  golden  coffin,   over   which 

was  raised  a  splendid  mausoleum.  His  ambition  for  celestial 
honors  was  gratified  in  his  death;  for  in  Egypt  and  elsewhere 
temples  were  dedicated  to  him,  and  divine  worship  was  paid  to 
his  statues. 

His  Character.  —  We  must  not  pass  this  point  without  a  few 
words,  at  least,  respecting  the  character  of  this  remarkable  man, 
who,  in  a  brief  career  of  twelve  years,  changed  entirely  the  cur- 
rents of  history,  forcing  them  into  channels  which  they  would  not 
have  followed  but  for  the  influence  of  his  life  and  achievements. 

We  cannot  deny  to  Alexander,  in  addition  to  a  remarkable 
genius  for  military  affairs,  an  alert  and  comprehensive  intellect. 
The  wisdom  shown  by  him  in  the  selection  of  Alexandria  in  Egypt 
as  the  great  depot  of  the  exchanges  of  the  East  and  the  West 


Fig.  40. 


COIN    OF   ALEXANDER    THE  GREAT. 
(Stamped  at  Erythrae,  in   Ionia.) 


1  It  was  soon  after  this  meeting  that  Alexander's  dearest  friend,  Hephasstion, 
died  at  Ecbatana.  Alexander  indulged  in  most  extravagant  expressions  of  grief. 
He  caused  a  funeral  pyre  to  be  erected  at  a  cost,  it  is  said,  of  10,000  talents 
($12,000,000),  and  instituted  in  memory  of  his  friend  magnificent  funeral  games. 
He  even  ordered  the  tops  of  the  towers  of  the  surrounding  cities  to  be  cut  off,  and 
the  horses  and  mules  to  be  put  in  mourning  by  having  their  manes  docked. 


454  ALEXANDER    THE    GREAT. 

has  been  amply  demonstrated  by  the  rare  fortunes  of  that  city.  His 
plan  for  the  union  of  Europe  and  Asia,  and  the  fusion  of  their 
different  races,  might  indeed  seem  visionary,  were  it  not  that  the 
degree  in  which  this  was  actually  realized  in  some  parts  of  his 
empire  during  subsequent  centuries  attests  the  sanity  of  the 
attempt.  He  had  fine  tastes,  and  liberally  encouraged  art,  science, 
and  literature.  Apelles,  Praxiteles,  and  Lysippus  had  in  him  a 
munificent  patron  ;  and  to  his  preceptor  Aristotle  he  sent  large  col- 
lections of  natural-history  objects,  gathered  in  his  extended  expe- 
ditions. He  had  an  impulsive,  kind,  and  generous  nature  :  he 
avenged  the  murder  of  his  enemy  Darius ;  and  he  repented  in  bitter 
tears  over  the  body  of  his  faithful  CUtus.  He  exposed  himself  like 
the  commonest  soldier,  sharing  with  his  men  the  hardships  of  the 
march  and  the  dangers  of  the  battle-field. 

But  Alexander  was,  even  judged  by  the  moral  requirements  of 
his  own  time,  a  man  of  many  faults.  He  indulged  in  shameful 
excesses,  and  gave  way  to  outbreaks  of  passion  that  transformed  a 
usually  mild  and  generous  disposition  into  the  fury  of  a  madman. 
The  vindictive  cruelty  that  he  sometimes  manifested  in  his  treat- 
ment of  prisoners  can  be  only  partially  extenuated  by  a  reference 
to  the  usages  and  the  standard  of  humanity  of  the  age.  The  con- 
tradictions of  his  life  cannot,  perhaps,  be  better  expressed  than  in 
the  words  once  applied  to  the  gifted  Themistocles  :  ''  He  was 
greater  in  genius  than  in  character." 

Results  of  Alexander's  Conquests.  —  The  remarkable  conquests 
of  Alexander  had  far-reaching  consequences.  They  ended  the 
long  struggle  between  Persia  and  Greece,  and  spread  Hellenic 
civilization  over  Egypt  and  Western  Asia.  The  distinction  between 
Greek  and  barbarian  was  obHterated,  and  the  sympathies  of  men, 
hitherto  so  narrow  and  local,  were  widened,  and  thus  an  important 
preparation  was  made  for  the  reception  of  the  cosmopolitan  creed 
of  Christianity.  The  world  was  given  a  universal  language  of  cult- 
ure, which  was  a  further  preparation  for  the  spread  of  Christian 
teachings.  Nor  should  we  fail  to  recall  the  rediscovery  of  the 
maritime  route  from  India  to  Europe,  which  the  historian  Ranke, 


RESULTS   OF  ALEXANDER'S   CONQUESTS.  455 

regarding  its  influence  upon  trade  and  commerce,  views  as  one  of 
the  most  important  results  of  Alexander's  expedition. 

But  the  evil  effects  of  the  conquest  were  also  positive  and  far- 
reaching.  The  sudden  acquisition  by  the  Greeks  of  the  enormous 
wealth  of  the  Persian  empire,  and  contact  with  the  vices  and 
the  effeminate  luxury  of  the  Oriental  nations,  had  a  most  demor- 
alizing effect  upon  Hellenic  life.  Greece  became  corrupt,  and  she 
m  turn  corrupted  Rome.  Thus  the  civilization  of  antiquity  was 
undermined. 

References.  —  Plutarch,  Life  of  Alexander.  Dodge,  Alexander  (Great 
Captains).  Mahaffy,  The  Story  of  Alexander's  Empire  (Story  of  the  Nations). 
Grote,  Llistory  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  ix.  pp.  505-549;  ib.  vol.  x.  pp. 
1-212;  (twelve  volume  ed.),  vol.  xii.  pp.  1-49  and  49-274.  Creasy,  Decisive 
Battles  of  the  World,  ch.  iii.,  entitled  "The  Battle  of  Arbela,  B.C.  331." 


456  THE    GRMCO-ORIENTAL   WORLD. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

THE    GR^CO-ORIENTAL      WORLD      FROM     THE     DEATH     OF 

ALEXANDER  TO  THE  CONQUEST  OF  GREECE 

BY  THE   ROMANS. 

(323-146  B.C.) 

Partition  of  Alexander's  Empire.  —  There  was  no  one  who 
could  wield  the  sword  that  fell  from  the  hand  of  Alexander.  It  is 
said  that,  when  dying,  being  asked  to  whom  the  kingdom  should 
belong,  he  replied,  "To  the  strongest,"  and  handed  his  signet  ring 
to  his  general  Perdiccas.  But  Perdiccas  was  not  strong  enough 
to  master  the  difficulties  of  the  situation.^  Indeed,  who  is  strong 
enough  to  rule  the  world? 

Consequently  the  vast  empire  created  by  Alexander's  unparalleled 
conquests  was  distracted  by  the  wranglings  and  wars  of  his  suc- 
cessors, and  before  the  close  of  the  fourth  century  B.C.  had  become 
broken  into  many  fragments.     Besides  minor  states,^  four  well- 

1  Perdiccas,  in  conjunction  with  his  brother  generals,  ruled  at  first  as  regent  for 
Philip  Arrhidaeus,  an  illegitimate  brother  of  Alexander,  who  was  proclaimed  titular 
king.  Later  the  government  was  administered  in  the  name  of  Arrhidaeus  and 
Alexander  the  Younger,  a  posthumous  son  of  Alexander  by  Roxana.  Both  the 
mother  and  the  son  were  murdered  some  years  later  by  Cassander,  the  ruler  of 
Macedonia. 

2  Rhodes.  —  The  city  of  Rhodes,  on  the  island  of  the  same  name,  became  the 
head  of  a  federation  of  adjacent  island-  and  coast-cities,  and  thus  laid  the  basis  of 
a  remarkable  commercial  prosperity  and  naval  power.  One  of  the  chief  incidents 
in  the  history  of  the  city  is  the  memorable  siege  it  sustained  by  Demetrius  Polior- 
cetes  (the  Besieger)  about  305  B.C.,  who  brought  in  vain  against  its  walls  the  most 
powerful  engines  ever  used  by  the  peoples  of  antiquity  in  siege  operations.  The 
place  the  city  held  in  the  commercial  world  is  shown  by  the  fact  that,  when  in  227 
B.C.  it  was  destroyed  by  an  earthquake,  it  was  re-established,  in  the  interests  of 


ST' 


ss 


\    \    \  ^^ 


KINGDOMS 
of  the 

SUCCESSORS  of  ALEXANDER 

C.  B.  C.  300. 


DrnninixntA  of  Ptolemy 


Jaxartea 


smoj^ 


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O      F 


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P  E  R  S  I 


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bT A 


PARriTION   OF  ALEXANDER'S  EMPIRE.  457 

defined  and  important  monarchies  rose  out  of  the  ruins.  After  the 
rearrangement  of  boundaries  that  followed  the  decisive  battle  of 
Ipsus  (fought in  Phrygia,  301  b.c),  these  principal  states  had  the  out- 
lines shown  by  the  accompanying  map.  Their  rulers  were  Lysima- 
chus,  Cassander,  Seleucus  Nicator,  and  Ptolemy,  who  had  each  as- 
sumed the  tide  of  king.  The  great  horn  was  broken ;  and  instead  of 
it  came  up  four  notable  ones  toward  the  four  winds  of  heaven.^ 

Lysimachus  held  Thrace  and  the  western  part  of  Asia  Minor ; 
Cassander  governed  Macedonia,  and  claimed  authority  over 
(ireece  ;"-  Seleucus  Nicator  ruled  Syria  and  the  countries  eastward 
to  the  Indus  ;  and  Ptolemy  held  sway  over  Egypt. 

The  kingdom  of  Lysimachus  soon  disappeared.  He  was  de- 
feated by  Seleucus  in  the  year  281  b.c,  and  his  dominions  were 
divided.  The  lands  in  Asia  Minor  were  joined  to  the  Syrian  king- 
dom, while  Thrace  was  absorbed  by  Macedonia.  The  other  mon- 
archies were  longer-hved,  but  all  were  finally  overwhelmed  by  the 
now  rapidly  rising  power  of  Rome.  In  the  following  paragraphs 
we  will  trace  in  brief  outline  the  fortunes  of  each,  so  long  as  they 
remained  independent  states.  We  shall  aim  to  do  nothing  more 
than  merely  to  indicate  the  place  of  each  in  universal  history.  In 
a  separate  paragraph,  space  will  be  found  for  a  few  observations 

international  trade,  by  the  voluntary  contributions  of  a  great  number  of  princes  and 
free  cities.  But  Rhodes  was  something  more  than  a  mere  commercial  emporium. 
It  was  one  of  the  chief  centres  of  Hellenistic  culture,  and  acquired  a  wide  fame 
through  its  schools  of  art  and  Rhetoric.  Julius  Caesar  studied  here  under  Rhodian 
teachers  of  oratory.  When  the  Romans  acquired  influence  in  the  East,  in  the 
second  century  B.C.,  they,  moved  by  commercial  jealousy,  made  Delos  the  favored 
trade-port  in  the  ^gean.  This  undermined  the  prosperity  of  Rhodes  and  it  sank 
into  obscurity. 

Pontus. —  Pontus  (Greek  for  sea),  a  state  of  Asia  Minor,  was  so  called  from 
its  position  upon  the  Euxine.  It  was  never  thoroughly  conquered  by  the  Mace- 
donians. It  has  a  place  in  history  mainly  because  of  the  lustre  shed  upon  it  by  the 
transcendent  ability  of  one  of  its  kings,  Mithridates  the  Great  (120-63  B.C.),  who 
spread  the  fame  of  the  little  kingdom  throughout  the  world  by  his  able,  and  for 
a  long  time  successful,  resistance  to  the  Roman  arms.  But  his  wars  with  Rome 
belong  rather  to  the  history  of  that  city  than  to  the  annals  of  Greece. 

1  Dan,  viii.  8. 

2  Cassander  never  secured  complete  control  of  Greece,  hence  this  country  is 
not  included  in  his  domains  as  these  appear  upon  the  map. 


458  THE    GR^CO-ORIENTAL    WORLD. 

on  the  history  of  the  cities  of  Greece  proper  during  the  period 
under  review. 

Macedonia  (323-167  b.c).  —  The  story  of  Macedonia  from 
the  death  of  Alexander  on  to  the  conquest  of  the  country  by  the 
Romans  is  made  up  largely  of  the  quarrels  and  crimes  of  rival 
aspirants  for  the  crown  that  Philip  and  Alexander  had  worn. 
During  a  great  part  of  the  period  the  successive  Macedonian 
kings  ^  were  exercising  or  attempting  to  exercise  authority  over  the 
cities  of  Greece.  Respecting  the  extent  of  their  power  or  influ- 
ence in  the  peninsula,  we  shall  find  it  more  convenient  to  speak  a 
little  further  on. 

Macedonia  was  one  of  the  first  countries  east  of  the  Adriatic  to 
come  in  hostile  contact  with  the  great  military  republic  of  the 
West.  Towards  the  close  of  the  third  century  b.c.  the  Macedo- 
nian king  Philip  V.  incurred  the  special  resentment  of  the  Romans 
for  having  entered  into  an  alliance  with  the  Carthaginians  in  the 
Second  Punic  War.  •  After  much  intrigue  and  a  series  of  wars,  the 
country  was  finally  brought  into  subjection  to  the  Italian  power. 
The  decisive  battle  was  fought  on  the  field  of  Pydna,  167  B.C.,  at 
which  time  the  Macedonian  throne  was  held  by  Perseus,  son  of 
Philip  V.  Some  years  later  (in  146  b.c.)  the  conquered  country 
was  made  into  a  Roman  province. 

Greece  :  the  Achaean  and  -ffitolian  Leagues.  —  From  the  sub- 
jection of  Greece  by  Philip  of  Macedon  to  the  absorption  of  Mace- 
donia into  the  growing  dominions  of  Rome,  the  Greek  cities  of  the 

1  Rulers  of  Macedonia  from  Philip  III.  to  Perseus :  — 

B.C. 

Philip  III.,  Arrhidaeus  (Perdiccas  regent)       323-316 

Cassander 316-296 

Philip  IV 296-295 

Demetrius  I.,  Poliorcetes 294-287 

Pyrrhus     287-286 

Lysimachus  and  others 286-277 

Antigonus  Gonatas 277-239 

Demetrius  II 239-229 

Antigonus  Doson  (guardian  of  Philip  V.)        229-220 

Philip  V 220-178 

Perseus 178-167 


THE  ACHMAN  AND   MTOLIAN  LEAGUES.  459 

peninsula  were,  as  we  have  seen,  much  of  the  time  at  least  under 
the  real  or  nominal  suzerainty  of  the  Macedonian  kings.  But  the 
Greeks  were  never  made  for  royal  subjects,  and  consequently 
they  were  in  a  state  of  chronic  revolt  against  this  foreign  authority. 

Thus,  no  sooner  had  they  heard  of  the  death  of  Alexander  than 
several  of  the  Grecian  states  arose  against  the  Macedonian  gen- 
eral Antipater  and  carried  oh  with  him  what  is  known  as  the 
LamianVVar^  (323-321  b.c).  The  struggle  ended  disastrously  for 
the  Greeks,  and  Demosthenes,  who  had  been  the  soul  of  the  move- 
ment, was  forced  to  flee  from  Athens.  He  took  refuge  in  a  temple 
of  Poseidon  on  an  island  ^  just  off  the  coast  of  the  Peloponnesus ; 
but  being  pursued  thither  by  the  agents  of  Antipater,  he  put  an 
end  to  his  own  life  by  means  of  poison  (322  b.c.).^ 

The  next  matter  of  moment  in  the  history  of  Greece  was  an 
invasion  of  the  Gauls  (279  B.C.),  kinsmen  of  the  Celtic  tribes  that 
about  a  century  before  this  time  had  sacked  the  city  of  Rome.  The 
fighting  strength  of  Macedonia  having  been  drained  into  the  East, 
the  passes  of  the  Balkan  were  practically  unsentinelled,  and  thus  the 
way  was  opened  for  the  irruption  into  the  peninsula  of  these  fright- 
ful hordes.  After  having  inflicted  terrible  suffering  upon  Mace- 
donia, the  savage  marauders,  trooping  southward,  forced  the  Pass 
of  Thermopylae,  as  the  Persians  had  done  just  two  hundred  years 
before,  and  then,  like  those  earlier  invaders,  made  an  attempt  to 
rob  the  temple  of  Apollo  at  Delphi.  Just  what  happened  there 
we  do  not  know.  Tradition  relates  that  the  god  himself  appeared, 
as  he  is  declared  to  have  done  at  the  time  of  the  Persian  attack 

1  From  the  city  of  Lamia  in  Thessaly,  where  Antipater  was  besieged  by  the 
Greeks. 

2  Calaurea,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Troezen. 

3  The  Athenian  orator  Hyperides  was  also  among  those  proscribed  by  Antipater. 
He  sought  an  asylum  in  the  temple  of  Poseidon  at  Hermione,  but  was  dragged 
thence  by  Antipater's  agents,  and  put  to  a  cruel  death  (322  B.C.).  Phocion  had  as 
usual  during  the  Lamian  War  acted  in  the  interests  of  the  Macedonians  (p.  433). 
When,  later,  the  democratic  or  Home  Rule  party  regained  power  at  Athens  he  was 
condemned  to  death  by  the  Athenians  as  a  traitor  to  Athenian  liberties  and  forced 
to  drink  the  poisonous  hemlock.  Some  time  afterwards  the  Athenians,  reversing 
their  unjust  judgment,  erected  a  monument  to  his  memory. 


460  THE    GRMCO-ORFENTAL   WORLD. 

(p.  391),  and,  aided  by  the  goddesses  Athena  and  Artemis,  to  have 
wrought  terrible  havoc  in  the  ranks  of  the  frightened  barbarians. 
What  is  certain  is  that  the  raid  on  the  sacred  place  was  somehow 
foiled  and  that  the  invaders  were  shortly  afterwards  driven  out  of 
Greece.  After  their  expulsion  from  the  peninsula,  the  barbarians 
scattered,  some  of  the  tribes  settUng  in  Asia  Minor,  and  there  giv- 
ing name  to  the  province  of  Galatia.^  The  celebrated  Greek  sculp- 
ture, the  Dying  Gaul,  popularly  but  erroneously  called  the  Dying 
Gladiator,  is  a  most  interesting  memorial  of  this  episode  in  Greek 
history  (see  Fig.  41). 

In  the  third  century  b.c.  there  arose  in  Greece  two  important 
confederacies  or  leagues,  whose  history  embraces  almost  every 
matter  of  interest  and  instruction  in  the  later  political  Hfe  of  the 
Greek  cities.  One  of  these,  called  the  Achaean  league,  included 
finally  all  the  states  of  the  Peloponnesus,^  as  well  as  some  cities 
outside  its  limits ;  while  the  other,  known  as  the  ^tolian  league, 
comprised  many  of  the  states  north  of  the  Corinthian  Gulf." 
These  late  attempts  at  federation  among  the  Grecian  cities  were 
one  expression  of  that  tendency  towards  nationalism  that  marks 
this  period  of  Greek  history.  They  were  fostered  by  the  intense 
desire  of  all  patriotic  Hellenes  to  free  themselves  from  the  hated 
arbitership  of  Macedonia.  The  Greeks  had  learned  at  last  —  but 
unhappily  too  late  —  that  the  liberty  they  prized  so  highly  could 
be  maintained  only  through  union. 

1  It  was  to  these  people  that  St.  Paul  addressed  one  of  his  epistles.  See  his 
Epistle  to  the  Galatians. 

2  Sparta  was  not  a  member  of  the  leagu.e  at  first,  but  its  jealous  and  bitter  enemy. 
The  Spartan  king  Cleomenes  III.  waged  with  the  confederated  states  what  is 
known  as  the  Cleomenic  War  (224-221  B.C.).  The  league  sought  and  obtained  aid 
of  Macedonia,  and  Sparta  was  defeated.  Cleomenes  had  just  effected  important 
reforms  at  Sparta,  which  promised  to  give  her  a  new  lease  of  life.  The  lands  had 
fallen  into  the  hands  of  a  few,  and  luxury  had  crept  in.  Cleomenes  by  a  redistribu- 
tion of  the  lands  and  the  abolition  of  all  debts  endeavored  to  restore  the  old  order 
of  things.  But  the  unfortunate  war  with  the  Achaean  confederates  destroyed  the 
last  hope  of  a  Spartan  restoration,  and  the  city  which  for  five  centuries  had  been 
so  prominent  in  Grecian  history  soon  after  this  sank  into  permanent  obscurity. 

3  For  a  study  of  these  confederations,  the  first  of  which  was  very  much  like  our 


THE  ACHMAN  AND  MTOLTAN  LEAGUES.  461 

The  Achaean  league  (281-146  h.c.)  assumed  importance  dur- 
ing the  first  half  of  the  third  century  b.c.  It  was  in  its  beginnings 
simply  a  revival  of  a  very  ancient  rehgious  union  (amphictyony) 
of  the  cities  of  Achaia.  It  was  one  of  the  most  successful 
efforts  ever  made  to  unite  the  Greek  cities  into  a  real  federal 
state  in  which  all  the  members  should  enjoy  perfect  equality 
of  rights  and  privileges.  The  chief  promoters  of  the  movement 
were  Aratus  (271-213  b.c.)  and  Philopoemen  (about  252-183  e.g.), 
both  of  whom  were  trusted  generals  of  the  league  and  men  of 


Fig.  41.     THE    DYING    GAUL.     (A  memorial  of  the  Gallic  invasion  of  Greece  in  the  third 

century  B.C) 

eminent  ability  and  enhghtened  patriotism.  Pausanias  calls  Philo- 
poemen "  the  last  of  the  Greeks/'  and  compares  him  to  Miltiades, 
because  his  achievements,  Hke  those  of  the  hero  of  Marathon, 
redounded  to  the  benefit  of  all  Greece.^ 

The  ^tohan  league,  estabhshed  about  280  b.c,  was  composed, 
not  of  cities,  but  of  tribes,  —  chiefly  the  half-civilized  tribes 
of  the  mountainous  regions  of  Central  Greece.  Its  chieftains 
displayed  little  of  the  statesmanship  evinced  by  the  leaders  of 
the  Achaean  league,  and  it  never  became  prominent  in  Greek 
affairs  save  from  a  military  point  of  view. 

own  federal  union,  consult  Freeman's  valuable  work  entitled  History  of  Federal 
Constitutions. 
1  viii.  52. 


462  THE    GR^CO-ORIENTAL   WORLD. 

United,  these  two  confederacies  might  have  maintained  the  po- 
litical independence  of  Greece  ;  but  that  spirit  of  dissension  which 
we  have  seen  to  be  the  bane  of  the  Hellenic  peoples  caused  them 
to  become,  in  the  hands,  of  intriguing  Rome,  weapons  first  for 
crushing  Macedonia^  and  then  for  destroying  each  other. 

Upon  the  conquest  of  Macedonia  by  the  Romans  (167  b.c), 
the  ^tolian  league  seems  to  have  been  dissolved  by  them,  on  the 
ground  that  the  yEtolians  had  been  lacking  in  devotion  to  Rome. 
At  the  same  time  a  thousand  of  the  leading  men  of  the  cities  of 
the  Achaean  league  were,  on  the  charge  of  having  aided  Perseus 
during  the  late  war,  transported  to  Italy  for  trial.^  Without  even 
being  granted  a  hearing,  the  exiles  were  kept  for  seventeen  years 
as  sort  of  hostage-prisoners  in  the  towns  of  Etruria.  At  the 
expiration  of  this  period,  the  survivors  were  permitted  to  return 
home.  They  returned  as  bitter  enemies  of  Rome,  and  were 
largely  instrumental  in  inciting  their  countrymen  to  acts  which 
soon  led  up  to  a  war  between  them  and  the  Romans.  Corinth, 
the  most  splendid  city  at  this  time  of  all  Greece,  and  the  most 
important  member  of  the  Achaean  league,  was  taken  by  the 
Roman  army  under  Mummius,  the  men  were  killed,  the  women 
and  children  sold  into  slavery,  the  rich  art  treasures  of  the  city 
sent  as  trophies  to  Rome,  and  its  temples  and  other  buildings 
given  to  the  flames  (146  b.c).  This  was  the  last  act  in  the  long 
and  varied  drama  of  the  political  life  of  ancient  Greece.  Hence- 
forth it  constituted  simply  a  portion  of  the  Roman  empire,  and 
bore  the  name  of  Achaia. 

1  In  the  so-called  Second  War  between  Rome  and  Macedonia  (200-197  B.C.) 
both  the  leagues  gave  aid  to  the  RomanS  against  the  Macedonian  king.  At  the 
battle  of  Cynoscephalae  (197  B.C.)  the  Macedonians  suffered  a  severe  defeat,  and 
were  forced  to  give  up  their  suzerainty  over  Greece.  The  Roman  general  Flam- 
ininus,  at  the  Isthmian  games  of  the  year  196  B.C.,  proclaimed  amidst  indescribable 
demonstrations  of  joy  on  the  part  of  the  Greeks  the  freedom  of  the  Grecian  cities. 
But  the  Greeks  soon  realized  how  little  proclamations  of  freedom  by  the  Romans 
meant.  They  had  escaped  from  the  yoke  of  Macedonia  only  to  find  themselves 
subjected  to  the  heavier  yoke  of  Rome.  But  it  must  be  admitted  that  they  were 
now  unfit  for  freedom ;  Rome  saved  them  from  themselves. 

2  Among  these  prisoners  was  the  historian  Polybius.    See  p.  519. 


SYRIA,  OR   THE  KINGDOM  OF  THE  SELEUCtDM.     463 

Syria,  or  the  Kingdom  of  the  Seleucidae  (312-65  b.c.).^  — 
This  kingdom,  during  the  two  centuries  and  more  of  its  existence, 
played  an  important  part  in  the  civil  history  of  the  world.  Under 
its  first  king  it  comprised  nominally  almost  all  the  countries  of 
Asia  conquered  by  Alexander,  thus  stretching  from  the  Hellespont 
to  the  Indus ;  but  in  reality  the  monarchy  embraced  only  Asia 
Minor,  Syria,  and  the  old  Assyria  and  Babylonia.  Its  rulers  were 
called  Seleucidae,  from  the  founder  of  the  kingdom,  Seleucus 
Nicator.^ 

Seleucus  Nicator  (312-281  B.C.),  besides  being  a  ruler  of 
unusual  ability,  was  a  most  liberal  patron  of  learning  and  art.  He 
is  declared  to  have  been  "  the  greatest  founder  of  cities  that  ever 
lived."  Throughout  his  dominions  he  founded  a  vast  number, 
some  of  which  endured  for  many  centuries,  and  were  known  far 
and  wide  as  centres  of  trade  and  Hellenistic  civilization. 

Upon  the  Tigris,  as  a  rival  to  Babylon,  he  built  Seleucia,  which 
grew  rapidly  into  a  capital  of  six  hundred  thousand  inhabitants. 
In  its  customs,  manners,  and  government,  it  was  essentially  a 
Greek  city  transplanted  from  Europe.  As  Seleucia  rose,  Babylon 
sank  into  obscurity,  and  soon  disappeared  from  history.  Six  other 
cities  in  different  parts  of  the  empire  of  Seleucus  bore  the  name 
Seleucia,  after  himself;  sixteen  he  called  Antioch,  in  honor  of  his 

1  For  the  sake  of  following  to  the  end  the  fortunes  of  the  Seleucidae  and  the 
Ptolemies  we  carry  our  account  of  Syrian  and  Egyptian  affairs  a  little  beyond  the 
date  (146  B.C.)  which  we  have  set  as  the  hmit  of  our  narrative. 

2  These  are  the  names  of  the  Seleucidae :  — 

B.C. 

Seleucus  I.,  Nicator,  founder  of  the  kingdom 312-281 

Antiochus  I.,  Soter .    .  ^ 281-261 

Antiochus  II.,  Theos 261-246 

Seleucus  II 246-226 

Seleucus  III.,  Ceraunus 226-223 

Antiochus  III.,  the  Great 223-187 

Seleucus  IV.,  Philopator 187-176 

Antiochus  IV.,  Epiphanes  (revolt  of  the  Jews  under  Judas  Maccabaeus).  176-164 

Antiochus  V.,  Eupator 164-162 

Several  obscure  names 162-69 

Antiochus  VIII.,  last  of  the  Seleucidae 69-65 


464 


THE    GRAiCO-ORIENTAL    WORLD. 


father ;  five  he  named  Laodicea,  for  his  mother ;  still  others  he 
called  Apamea,  in  honor  of  one  of  his  wives.  Antioch  on  the 
Orontes,  in  Northern  Syria,  became  after  Seleucia  on  the  Tigris 
the  capital  of  the  kingdom,  and  obtained  an  influence  and  renown 
as  a  centre  of  population  and  trade  which  have  given  its  name  a 
sure  place  in  history/ 

This  colonization  of  Western  Asia  by  Greeks  was,  as  has  already 
been  remarked,  one  of  the  most  noteworthy  results  of  the  Graeco- 
Macedonian  conquest.  The  founding  of  all  these  cities,  however, 
as  the  historian  Ranke  observes,  "  must  not  be  reckoned  solely 
to  the  credit  of  Seleucus  and  Alexander.  Their  origin  was 
closely  connected  with  the  main  tendencies  of  Greek  coloniza- 
tion.    The  Greeks  had  struggled  long  and  often  to  penetrate  into 


Fig.  42.     COIN    OF   ANTIOCHUS    III.    (THE   GREAT) 


Asia,  but  so  long  as  the  Persian  empire  remained  supreme  they 
were  energetically  repulsed,  and  it  was  only  as  mercenaries  that 
they  found  admittance.  This  bar  was  now  removed.  Released 
from  all  restrictions  and  attracted  by  the  revolution  in  politics,  the 
Greeks  now  streamed  into  Asia  Minor,  Syria,  and  Egypt." 

The  successors  of  Seleucus  Nicator  led  the  kingdom  through 
checkered  fortunes.  On  different  sides  provinces  fell  away  and 
became  independent  states.^     Antiochus  III.  (223-187  B.C.), called 

1  Antioch  still  remains ;  but  most  of  the  other  cities  are  gone,  with  scarcely 
a  trace  left  of  their  former  existence.  Thus  the  site  of  the  great  capital  Seleucia, 
once  the  rival  of  Babylon,  is  now  marked  by  just  a  few  mounds  and  heaps  of 
rubbish. 

-  The  most  important  of  these  were  the  following  :  — 

I.   Pergamus.  —  This  was  a  state  in  Western  Asia  Minor,  which  became  inde- 


KINGDOM   OF   THE   PTOLEMIES  IN  EGYPT.  465 

"  the  Great,"  raised  the  kingdom  for  a  short  time  into  great  prom- 
inence ;  but  through  attempting  to  make  conquests  in  Europe, 
and  further  through  giving  asylum  to  the  Carthaginian  general 
Hannibal,  he  incurred  the  fatal  hostility  of  Rome.  Quickly  driven 
by  the  Roman  legions  across  the  Hellespont,  he  was  hopelessly  de- 
feated at  the  battle  of  Magnesia  (190  B.C.),  and  a  large  part  of 
Asia  Minor  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Romans,  who  gave  the  most 
of  it  to  their  friend  and  ally  Eumenes  H.,  king  of  Pergamus  (see 
note  below).  After  the  battle  of  Magnesia  the  Syrian  kingdom 
was  of  very  little  importance  in  the  world's  affairs. 

Antiochus  IV.,  Epiphanes  (176-164  B.C.),  by  the  pillage  and 
desecration  of  the  temple  at  Jerusalem,  drove  the  Jews  to  suc- 
cessful revolt,  under  the  lead  of  the  heroic  Maccabees.  They 
retained  their  independence  until  the  intervention  in  Syrian 
affairs  by  the  Romans.  Other  rulers  kept  the  kingdom  in  con- 
stant contention  with  the  states  of  Asia  Minor  on  the  west,  with 
the  Bactrians  and  the  Parthians  on  the  east,  and  with  Egypt  on 
the  south.  At  last,  brought  again  into  collision  with  Rome,  the 
country  was  overrun  by  Pompey  the  Great,  and  became  a  part  of 
the  Roman  Republic,  63  B.C. 

Kingdom  of  the  Ptolemies  in  Egypt  (323-30  b.c).  —  The 
Graeco-Egyptian  empire  of  the  Ptolemies   was  by  far  the  most 

pendent  upon  the  death  of  Seleucus  Nicator  (281  B.C.).  Under  the  patronage  of 
the  Romans,  it  gradually  grew  into  a  powerful  kingdom,  which  at  the  time  of 
Eumenes  II.  (197-159  B.C.)  embraced  a  considerable  part  of  Asia  Minor.  Its 
capital,  also  called  Pergamus,  became  a  most  noted  centre  of  Greek  learning  and 
civilization,  and  through  its  great  library  and  university  gained  the  renown  of  being, 
next  to  Alexandria  in  Egypt,  the  greatest  city  of  the  Hellenistic  world.  Parchment 
was  here  first  largely  used  for  books  in  the  place  of  Egyptian  papyrus,  the  exporta- 
tion of  which  the  rulers  of  Egypt  at  this  time  forbade.  In  133  B.C.  Attalus  III., 
after  killing  all  his  heirs,  ended  a  life  of  folly  by  bequeathing  his  kingdom  to  the 
Roman  people,  who  immediately  took  steps  to  secure  the  prize,  and  made  it  into 
a  province  under  the  name  of  Asia. 

2,  Parthia.  — -  Parthia  was  a  powerful  Turanian  state  that  grew  up  east  of  the 
Euphrates,  in  the  lands  that  formed  the  heart  and  centre  of  the  old  Persian  empire 
(from  about  255  B.C.  to  226  A.D,),  Its  kings  were  at  first  formidable  enemies  of  the 
rulers  of  Syria,  and  later  of  the  Romans,  whom  they  never  allowed  to  make  any 
considerable  conquest  beyond  the  Euphrates. 


466  THE    GRMCO-ORTEMTAL   WORLD. 

important,  in  its  influence  upon  the  civilization  of  the  world,  of  all 
the  kingdoms  that  owed  their  origin  to  the  conquests  of  Alexander. 
The  founder  of  the  house  and  dynasty  was  Ptolemy  I.,  surnamed 
Soter^  (323-283  B.C.).  Ptolemy  was  a  general  under  Alexander,  and 
seemed  to  possess  much  of  his  great  commander's  ability  and  rest- 
less energy,  with  a  happy  freedom  from  his  worst  faults.  His 
descendants  ruled  in  Egypt  for  nearly  three  centuries,^  a  most 
important  period  in  the  intellectual  life  of  the  world.  "  A  large 
part  of  the  thoughts,"  says  Gardner,  "  which  dominate  the  world's 
views  in  philosophy,  religion,  and  science,  saw  the  light  in 
Alexandria." 

Upon  the  partition  of  the  empire  of  Alexander,  Ptolemy  had  re- 
ceived Egypt,  with  parts  of  Arabia  and  Libya.  To  these  he  added 
by  conquest  Coele-Syria,  Phoenicia,  Palestine,  Cyrene,  and  Cyprus. 
Following  the  usage  of  the  time,  he  transported  a  hundred 
thousand  Jews  from  Jerusalem  to  Alexandria,  attached  them  to  his 
person  and  policies  by  wise  and  conciliatory  measures,  and  thus 
effected,  in  such  measure  as  was  possible,  at  this  great  capital  of 
the  Nile,  that  fusion  of  the  races  of  the  East  and  the  West  which 
was  the  dream  of  Alexander. 

The  possession  of  the  forests  of  Mount  Lebanon,  and  the  com- 
mand of  the  artisans  of  Phoenicia,  enabled  Ptolemy  to  realize  his 
plans  of  making  Egypt  a  naval  power,  and  the  emporium  of  the 
carrying  trade  between  Asia  and  Europe.     Alexandria  became  the 

1  That  is,  Deliverer,  a  name  given  him  by  the  Rhodians  in  gratitude  for  military 
aid  that  he  rendered  them. 

2  The  names,  and  dates  of  the  reigns,  of  the  rulers  of  the  Graeco-Egyptian  king- 
dom are  as  follows  :  — 

B.C. 

Ptolemy  I.,  Soter 323-283 

Ptolemy  II.,  Philadelphus 283-247 

Ptolemy  III.,  Euergetes 247-222 

Ptolemy  IV 222-205 

Ptolemy  V 205-181 

Ptolemy  VI 181-146 

Several  obscure  names       146-51 

Cleopatra,  last  of  the  line 51-30 

Egypt  becomes  a  part  of  the  Roman  empire 30 


KINGDOM   OF   THE  PTOLEMIES  IN  EGYPT.  467 

great  depot  of  exchange  for  the  productions  of  the  world.  At  the 
entrance  of  the  harbor  stood  the  Pharos,  or  hghthouse,  —  the  first 
structure  of  its  kind,  — which  Ptolemy  built  to  guide  the  fleets  of 
the  world  to  his  capital.  This  edifice  was  reckoned  one  of  the 
Seven  Wonders. 

But  it  was  not  alone  the  exchange  of  material  products  that 
was  comprehended  in  Ptolemy's  scheme.  His  aim  was  to  make 
his  capital  the  intellectual  centre  of  the  world  —  the  place  where 
the  arts,  sciences,  literatures,  and  even  the  religions  of  the  world 
should  meet  and  mingle.  He  founded  the  famous  Museum,  a 
sort  of  college,  which  became  the  "  University  of  the  East,"  and 
established  the  renowned  Alexandrian  Library.  He  encouraged 
poets,  artists,  philosophers,  and  teachers  in  all  departments  of 
learning  to  settle  in  Alexandria  by  conferring  upon  them  immu- 
nities and  privileges,  and  by  gifts  and  a  munificent  patronage. 
His  court  embraced  the  learning  and  genius  of  the  age. 

Ptolemy  Philadelphus  (283-247  B.C.)  followed  closely  in  the 
footsteps  of  his  father,  carrying  out  as  far  as  possible  the  plans 
and  policies  of  the  preceding  reign.  To  secure  Egypt's  com- 
mercial supremacy,  the  old  Pharaonic  canal  uniting  the  Nile  and 
the  Red  Sea  was  restored,  and  roads  were  constructed  to  facilitate 
the  transportation  of  merchandise  from  the  ports  on  that  sea 
to  the  river.  Philadelphus  added  largely  to  the  royal  library,  and 
extended  to  scholars  the  same  liberal  patronage  that  his  father  had 
before  him.  It  was  under  his  direction  that  the  important  transla- 
tion into  Greek  of  the  old  Hebrew  testament  was  made.^ 

The  surname  Philadelphus  (brother-lover)  was  given  this  Ptol- 
emy on  account  of  his  tender  devotion  to  his  wife  Arsinoe,  who 
was  also  his  sister.  This  usage  of  intermarriage  among  the  mem- 
bers of  the  royal  family  —  a  usage  in  which  the  Ptolemies  followed 
what  was  a  custom  of  the  ancient  Pharaohs  —  was  one  of  the 
causes  of  the  contentions  and  calamities  which  at  last  overwhelmed 
the  house  with  woes  and  infamy. 

Ptolemy  IH.  (247-222  b.c.)  was  called  by  the  Egyptians 
1  This  was  the  so-called  Septuagint  version.    See  p.  519. 


468  THE    GRMCO-ORIENTAL   WORLD. 

Euergetes  (benefactor),  because  in  one  of  his  wars — a  war  against 
the  king  of  Syria,  which  led  him  beyond  the  Euphrates  —  he 
recaptured  and  placed  again  in  their  temples  some  statues  of  the 
Egyptian  gods  which  the  Persian  conqueror  Cambyses  and  the 
Assyrian  Sargon  had  borne  away  as  trophies.  He  was  possessed 
of  great  military  genius,  and  under  him  the  dominions  of  the 
Ptolemies  touched  their  widest  limits ;  while  the  capital  Alexan- 
dria reached  the  culminating  point  in  its  fame  as  the  centre  of 
Greek  civilization. 

Altogether  the  Ptolemies  reigned  in  Egypt  almost  exactly  three 
centuries  (323-30  B.C.).  Those  rulers  who  "held  the  throne  for 
the  last  two  hundred  years  were,  with  few  exceptions,  a  succession 
of  monsters,  such  as  even  Rome  in  her  worst  days  could  scarcely 
equal.  These  monarchs  plunged  into  the  most  despicable  ex- 
cesses, and  were  guilty  of  every  folly  and  cruelty.  The  usage  of 
intermarriage,  already  mentioned,  led  to  endless  family  quarrels, 
which  resulted  in  fratricide,  matricide,  and  all  the  dark  deeds  in- 
cluded in  the  calendar  of  royal  crimes.  The  story  of  the  beautiful 
but  dissolute  Cleopatra,  the  last  of  the  house  of  the  Ptolemies,  be- 
longs properly  to  the  history  of  Rome,  which  city  was  now  interfer- 
ing in  the  affairs  of  the  Orient.  In  the  year  30  B.C.,  the  year  which 
marks  the  death  of  Cleopatra,  Egypt  was  made  a  Roman  province. 

We  have  now  traced  the  political  fortunes  of  the  Grecian  cities 
through  about  six  centuries  of  authentic  history.  In  succeeding 
chapters,  in  order  to  render  more  complete  the  picture  we  have 
endeavored  to  draw  of  ancient  Hellas,  we  shall  add  some  details 
respecting  Hellenic  art,  literature,  philosophy,  and  society  —  de- 
tails which  could  not  well  have  been  introduced  in  the  foregoing 
chapters,  without  interrupting  the  movement  of  the  narrative.  Even 
a  short  study  of  these  matters  will  help  us  to  form  a  more  ade- 
quate conception  of  that  wonderful,  many-sided  genius  of  the 
Hellenic  race  which  enabled  Hellas,  "  captured,  to  lead  captive 
her  captor. " 

References. —  Plutarch,  Lives  of  Aratus  zviA  Philopcemen.  Kingsley, 
"Alexandria  and  her  Schools"   (in    Sir    Walter   Raleigh   and  his    Time). 


KINGDOM  OF  THE  PTOLEMIES  IN  EGYPT 


469 


Gardner,  A'ifTf  Chaptei's  in  Greek  History,  ch.  xv.,  entitled  "The  Successors 
of  Alexander  and  Greek  Civilization  in  the  East."  Mahaffy,  Greek  Life  and 
Thotight  from  the  Age  of  Alexander  to  the  Roman  Conquest.  Davidson,  The 
Education  of  the  Greek  People  (International  Education  Series),  ch.  viii., 
"  Greek  Education  in  Contact  with  the  Great  Eastern  World."  Grote,  History 
of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  x.  pp.  213-326;  (tvi^elve  volume  ed.),  vol. 
xii.  pp.  274-331.  Freeman,  Histoiy  of  Federal.  Government  (new  edition, 
1893),  chs.  v.-ix;  gives  particularly  with  great  fulness  the  history  of  the 
Achaean  league. 


Fig.  43:     COIN    OF   ATHENS:     (Third  century  B.C.) 


470       ARCHITECTURE,   SCULPTURE,   AND   PAINTING. 


Part   Sixth. 

GREEK  ART,    CULTURE,   AND   SOCIAL   LIFE. 
CHAPTER   XXVIII. 

GREEK  ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND   PAINTING. 

Introductory:  The  Greek  Sense  of  Beauty. — The  Greeks 
were  artists  by  nature.  They  possessed  an  organization  that  was 
most  exquisitely  sensitive  to  impressions  of  the  beautiful.  As  it 
has  been  expressed,  "ugliness  gave  them  pain  Hke  a  blow." 
Everything  they  made,  from  the  shrines  for  their  gods  to  the 
meanest  utensils  of  domestic  use,  was  beautiful.  Beauty  they 
placed  next  to  holiness ;  indeed,  they  almost  or  quite  made 
beauty  and  moral  right  the  same  thing.  It  is  said  that  it  was 
noted  by  the  Greeks  as  something  strange  and  exceptional  that 
Socrates  was  good,  notwithstanding  he  was  ugly  in  feature. 

The  first  maxim  in  Greek  art  was  the  same  as  that  which 
formed  the  first  principle  in  Greek  morality  — "  Nothing  in 
excess."  The  Greek  eye  was  offended  at  any  exaggeration  of 
parts,  at  any  lack  of  symmetry  or  proportion  in  an  object.  The 
proportions  of  the  Greek  temple  are  perfect.  An^  deviations 
from  the  measurements  or  canons  of  the  Greek  artists  are  found 
to  be  departures  from  the  ideal. 

Clearness  of  outline  was  another  requirement  of  Greek  taste. 
The  artistic  Greek  had  a  positive  dislike  of  all  vagueness  or  indis- 
tinctness of  form.  Contrast  the  clear-cut  lines  of  a  Greek  temple 
with  the  vague,  ever-vanishing  lines  of  a  mediaeval  Gothic  cathedral. 


THE    GREEK  SENSE    OF  BEAUTY. 


471 


It  is  possible  that  Nature  herself  taught  the  Greeks  these  first 
principles  of  their  art.  Nature  in  Greece  never  goes  to  extremes. 
The  Grecian  mountains  and  islands  are  never  over-large.  The 
climate  is  never  excessively  cold  nor  oppressively  hot.  And 
Nature  here  seems  to  abhor  vagueness.  The  singular  transpar- 
ency of  the  atmosphere,  especially  that  of  Attica,  lends  a  remark- 
able clearness  of  outline  to  every  object.  The  Parthenon  in  its 
clear-cut  features  seems  modelled  after  the  hills  that  lie  with  such 
absolute  clearness  of  form  against  the  Attic  sky. 


Fig.  44.     ARCHAIC    MASONRY. 


I.   Architecture. 

Architecture  of  the  Mycenaean  Age. — The  term  "Pelasgian" 
was  formerly  applied  to  various  remains  of  massive  masonry 
found  particularly  in  the  lands  of  the  Eastern  Mediterranean. 
The  origin  of  these  works  was  a  mystery  to  the  Hellenes  of  his- 
toric times,  who  ascribed  them  to  the  giant  Cyclops ;  hence  the 
name  "Cyclopean"  that  also  attached  to  them. 

These  works  exhibit  three  well-defined  stages  of  development. 
In  the  earliest  and  rudest  structures  the  stones  are  gigantic  in  size 
and  scarcely  touched  by  the  chisel ;  in  the  next  oldest  the  stones 
are  worked  into  irregular  polygonal  blocks  ;  while  in  the  latest  the 
blocks  are  cut  into  rectangular  shape  and  laid  in  regular  courses. 

Within  the  last  few   years  the  spade  of  the  archaeologist  has 


472        ARCHITECTURE,   SCULPTURE,  AND   PAINTING. 

uncovered  on  various  sites  of  the  ^gean  lands,  as  at  Troy, 
Mycenae,  and  Tiryns,  many  additional  memorials  of  this  primitive 
architecture.^  The  age  that  erected  these  monuments  is  now 
very  generally  called  the  Mycenaean  Age,  for  the  reason  that 
Mycenae  appears  to  have  been  one  of  the  most  important  centres 
of  this  early  wide-spread  culture.  What  centuries  witnessed  the 
erection  of  the  monuments  whose  remains  we  now  look  upon,  and 
what  was  the  relation  of  this  prehistoric  architecture  to  that  of 
historic  times,  are  still  matters  of  doubt.  Since  the  subject  is 
still  enveloped  in  such  obscurity,  and  the  conclusions  thus  far 
reached  are  barely  more  than  conjectures,  we  shall  do  well,  in  the 


Fig    45.     DORIC    CAPITAL. 


Fig.  46.     IONIC   CAPITAL. 


present  connection,  to  venture  nothing  further  than  the  simple 
statement  already  made.- 

Orders  of  Greek  Architecture.  —  By  the  close  of  the  sixth 
century  Greek  architecture  had  made  considerable  advance,  and 
presented  three  distinct  styles  or  orders.  These  are  known  as  the 
Doric,  the  Ionic,  and  the  Corinthian.  They  are  distinguished 
from  one  another  chiefly  by  differences  in  the  proportions  and 
ornamentation  of  the  column. 

The  Doric  column  is  without  a  base,  and  has  a  simple  and  mas- 
sive capital  (Fig.  45).  The  prototype  of  this  order  may  be  seen  at 
Beni-Hassan,  in  Egypt.     At  first  the  Doric  temples  of  the  Greeks 

1  See  pp.  2411,  and  2511. 

2  For  some  remarks  in  regard  to  the  possible  connection  between  Mycenaean 
sculpture  and  that  of  historic  Greece,  see  further  on,  p.  482. 


ORDERS   OF  GREEK  ARCHITECTURE. 


473 


were  almost  as  massive  as  those  of  the  Egyptian  builders,  but 
gradually  they  grew  less  heavy  as  they  became  permeated  with 
the  freer  Greek  spirit. 

The  Ionic  column  is  characterized  by  the  spiral    volutes  of  the 
capital  (Fig.  46) .    This  form  seems  to  have  been  borrowed  from  the 
Assyrians,  and  was  princi- 
pally   employed     by     the 
Greeks   of    Ionia,   whence 
its  name. 

The  Corinthian  order  is 
distinguished  by  its  rich 
capital,  formed  of  acanthus 
leaves  (Fig.  47).  Tl)^ 
type  is  made  up  of  Egyp- 
tian, Assyrian,  and  Grecian 
elements.  The  bell  shape 
of  the  -capital  is  in  imita- 
tion of  the  Egyptian  style. 
The  addition  of  the  acan- 
thus leaves  is  said  to  have 
been  suggested  to  the  artist 
Callimachus  by  the  pretty 

effect  of  a  basket  surrounded  by  the  leaves  of  an  acanthus 
plant,  upon  which  it  had  accidentally  fallen.  This  order  was  not 
much  employed  in  Greece  before  the  time  of  Alexander  the  Great. 

The  entire  structure  was  made  to  harmonize  with  its  supporting 
columns.  The  general  characteristics  of  the  orders  are  happily 
suggested  by  the  terms  we  use  when  we  speak  of  the  "  severe  " 
Doric,  the  "  graceful "  Ionic,  and  the  "  ornate  "  Corinthian  ;  or 
again,  when  we  call  the  Ionic  "  the  feminine,"  and  the  Doric 
"  the  masculine  "  type. 

Greek  Architecture  chiefly  Sacred  :  Early  Grecian  Temples.  — 
Religion  was  the  very  breath  of  Greek  architecture.  It  was  relig- 
ious feehng  which  created  the  noblest  monuments  of  the  architect- 
ural genius  of  Hellas.     Hence  in  the  few  words  which  we  shall 


Fig,  47.     CORINTHIAN    CAPITAL. 


474        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTING. 

have  to  say  respecting  Greek  architecture,  our  attention  will  be 
confined  almost  exclusively  to  the  temples  of  Greece. 

In  the  earliest  times  the  Greeks  had  no  temples,  save  the 
forests.  The  statues  of  the  gods  were  first  placed  beneath  the 
shelter  of  a  tree,  or  within  its  hollow  trunk.  After  a  time,  a  build- 
ing rudely  constructed  of  the  trunks  of  trees  and  shaped  like  the 
habitations  of  men  marked  the  first  step  in  advance.  Then 
stone  took  the  place  of  the  wooden  frame.  With  the  introduction 
of  a  durable  material,  the  artist  was  encouraged  to  expend  more 
labor  and  care  upon  his  work.  At  the  same  time  he  received 
helpful  hints  from  the  old  builders  of  the  East.  Thus  architect- 
ure began  to  make  rapid  strides,  and  by  the  century  following  the 
age  of  Solon  at  Athens  there  were  manv  beautiful  temples  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  Hellenic  world. 

Temple  of  Artemis  at  Ephesus.  —  The  temple  of  Artemis  at 
Ephesus  was  one  of  the  oldest,  as  well  as  one  of  the  most  famous, 
of  the  sacred  edifices  of  the  Greeks.  The  original  structure  was 
commenced  about  the  beginning  of  the  sixth  century  b.c,  and, 
according  to  Pliny,was  one  hundred  and  twenty  years  in  process  of 
building.  It  was  a  good  example  of  the  Ionic  order  of  architecture. 
Croesus  gave  liberally  of  his  wealth  to  ornament  the  shrine.  It 
was  known  far  and  wide  as  one  of  the  Seven  Wonders  of  the  World. 

In  the  year  356  B.C.,  on  the  same  night,  it  is  said,  that  Alexan- 
der was  born,  an  ambitious  youth,  named  Herostratus,  fired  the 
building,  simply  to  immortalize  his  name.  The  roof  of  the  struct- 
ure was  of  cedar,  and  this,  probably,  was  the  only  part  destroyed. 
It  was  restored  with  even  greater  magnificence  than  at  first.  Alex- 
ander coveted  the  honor  of  rebuilding  the  temple,  and  proposed 
to  the  Ephesians  to  do  so,  provided  that  he  be  allowed  to  inscribe 
his  name  upon  it.  The  Ephesians  gracefully  declined  the  pro- 
posal by  replying  that  it  was  not  right  for  one  deity  to  erect  a 
temple  to  another.^     Alexander  was  obliged  to  content  himself 

1  Alexander,  it  appears,  made  a  similar  ofifer  to  the  priests  of  the  temple  of 
Athena  Polias  at  Priene,  a  city  of  Caria,  for  a  tablet  has  been  found,  upon  which 
Alexander's  name  is  engraved  as  dedicator.  The  slab  may  be  seen  in  the  British 
Museum. 


TEMPLE    OF  ARTEMIS  AT  EPHESUS.  475 

with  placing  within  the  shrine  his  own  portrait  by  Apelles.  The 
value  of  the  gifts  and  votive  offerings  to  the  temple  was  beyond  all 
calculation :  kings  and  states  vied  with  one  another  in  the  cost 
and  splendor  of  their  donations.  Painters  and  sculptors  were 
eager  to  have  their  masterpieces  assigned  a  place  within  its  walls, 
so  that  it  became  a  great  national  gallery  of  paintings  and  statuary. 
So  inviolable  was  the  sanctity  of  the  temple  that  at  all  times, 
and  especially  in  times  of  tumult  and  danger,  property  and 
treasures  were  carried  to  it  as  a  safe  repository.^  But  the  riches 
of  the  sanctuary  proved  too  great  a  temptation  to  the  Roman 
emperor  Nero.  He  risked  incurring  the  anger  of  its  patron 
goddess,  and  robbed  the  temple  of  many  statues  and  a  vast 
amount  of  gold.  Later  (in  262  a.d.),  the  barbarian  Goths 
enriched  themselves  with  the  spoils  of  the  shrine.  The  temple 
itself  fared  but  Uttle  better  than  the  treasures  it  guarded.  The 
Goths  left  it  a  ruin;  and  long  after,  some  of  the  celebrated 
jasper  columns  were,  by  order  of  the  emperor  Justinian,  carried 
to  Byzantium,  and  there  at  this  day  uphold  the  dome  of  St. 
Sophia,  once  the  most  noted  church,  now  the  most  famous 
mosque,  in  all  the  East.  Other  columns  were  taken  to  Italy  and 
built  into  Christian  churches  there.^ 

1  The  Grecian  temples  were,  in  a  certain  sense,  banks  of  deposit.  They  con- 
tained special  chambers  or  vaults  for  the  safe-keeping  of  valuables.  The  heaps  of 
gold  and  silver  relics  discovered  by  Di  Cesnola  at  Sunium,  in  the  island  of  Cyprus, 
were  found  in  the  secret  subterranean  vaults  of  a  great  temple.  The  priests  often 
loaned  out  on  interest  the  money  deposited  with  them,  the  revenue  from  this  source 
being  added  to  that  from  the  leased  lands  of  the  temple  and  from  the  tithes  of  war 
booty,  to  meet  the  expenses  of  the  services  of  the  shrine.  We  may  liken  the  wealth 
of  the  ancient  temples  to  that  of  the  mediaeval  churches.  "  The  gods  were  the 
wealthiest  capitalists."  Usually  the  temple  property  in  Greece  was  managed  solely 
by  the  priests,  but  the  treasure  of  the  Parthenon  at  Athens  formed  an  exception  to 
this  rule.  The  treasure  here  belonged  to  the  State,  and  was  controlled  and  dis- 
posed of  by  the  vote  of  the  people.  Even  the  personal  property  of  the  goddess, 
the  gold  drapery  of  the  statue  (see  p.  489),  which  was  worth  about  ^600,000,  could 
be  used  in  case  of  great  need ;  but  it  must  be  replaced  in  due  time,  with  a  fair 
interest. 

2  The  site  of  the  temple  was  for  many  centuries  lost;  but  in  1871  Mr.  Wood, 
an  excavator,  uncovered  portions  of  its  ancient  pavement,  and  brought  to  light 
fragments  of  sculpture,  which  may  now  be  seen  in  the  British  Museum. 


476        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTING. 

The  Delphian  Temple.  —  The  first  temple  erected  at  Delphi 
over  the  spot  whence  issued  the  mysterious  vapors  (p.  48)  was 
a  rude  wooden  structure.  In  the  year  548  B.C.,  the  temple  then 
standing  was  destroyed  by  fire.  All  the  cities  and  states  of 
Hellas  contributed  to  its  rebuilding.  Even  the  king  of  Egypt, 
Amasis,  sent  a  munificent  gift.  An  immense  construction  fund 
was  thus  collected ;  for  the  temple  was  to  exceed  in  magnifi- 
cence anything  the  world  had  yet  seen.  The  Athenian  Alcmae- 
onidae,  as  will  be  recalled,  were  the  contractors  who  undertook 
the  rebuilding  of  the  shrine   (p.  119). 

The  structure  was  impressive  both  from  its  colossal  size  and  the 
massive  simplicity  that  characterizes  the  Doric  style  of  architect- 
ure. It  was  crowded  with  the  spoils  of  many  battle-fields, 
with  the  rich  gifts  of  kings,  and  with  rare  works  of  art.  After 
remaining  for  many  years  secure,  through  the  awe  and  reverence 
which  its  oracle  inspired,  it  later,  like  the  temple  at  Ephesus, 
suffered  frequent  spoliation.  The  greed  of  conquerors  overcame 
all  religious  scruples.  The  Phocians  robbed  the  temple  of  a 
treasure  equivalent,  it  is  estimated,  to  more  than  ^10,000,000 
(see  p.  434)  ;  and  Nero  is  said  to  have  plundered  it  of  five 
hundred  bronze  images.  But  Constantine  (emperor  of  Rome 
306-337  A.D.,  and  founder  of  Constantinople)  was  the  Nebuchad- 
nezzar who  bore  off  the  sacred  vessels  and  many  statues  as 
trophies  to  his  new  capital  then  rising  on  the  Hellespont.^ 


1  The  French  are  at  the  present  time  (1895)  carrying  on  excavations  on  the  site 
of  Delphi,  The  foundations  of  the  ancient  temple  of  Apollo  have  been  laid  bare ; 
but,  greatly  to  the  disappointment  of  the  excavators,  no  sculptures  of  value  have 
been  found.  It  is  probable  that  the  temple  was  literally  stripped  bare  of  its  art 
treasures  by  the  Romans.  But  though  the  spade  has  turned  up  so  little  of  value 
on  the  site  of  the  temple  of  Apollo,  on  other  Delphian  sites  sculptures  and  inscrip- 
tions of  the  greatest  interest  and  value  have  been  brought  to  the  light.  Certain 
remains  exhumed  have  been  identified  with  the  treasuries  of  the  Athenians,  the 
Boeotians,  and  other  communities.  By  far  the  most  important  discovery  thus  far 
made  consists  of  a  number  of  inscriptions  containing  hymns  to  Apollo,  with  the 
musical  notation  in  connection  with  the  words.  One  of  these  is  supposed  to  be  a 
composition  commemorative  of  the  miraculous  deliverance  of  Delphi  from  the 
Gauls  under  Brennus  in  the  third  century  B.C.  (p.  459).     This  discovery  makes  a 


ATHENIAN  ACROPOLIS  AND   PARI'IIENON 


477 


The  Athenian  Acropolis  and  the  Parthenon. — In  the  history 
of  art  there  is  no  other  spot  in  the  world  possessed  of  such  in- 
terest as  the  flat-topped  rock  which  constituted  the  Acropohs  of 
Athens.  We  have  seen  that  in  early  times  the  eminence  was  used 
as  a  stronghold.  But  later,  the  settlement  having  outgrown 
primitive  conditions,  the  summit  of  the  rock  was  consecrated 
to  the  temples  and  the  worship  of  the  deities,  and  came 
to    be    called  "  the    city   of  the    gods."     During   the    period    of 


Fig.  48.     THE    PARTHENON.      (From  a  photograph.) 

Athenian  supremacy,  especially  in  the  Periclean  Age,  as  we  have 
already  learned  (p.  263),  Hellenic  genius  and  piety  adorned  this 
spot  with  temples  and  statues  that  all  the  world  has  pronounced 
to  be  faultless  specimens  of  beauty  and  taste. 

The  most  celebrated  of  the  buildings  upon  the  Acropolis  was 
the  Parthenon,  the  "  Residence  of  the  virgin  goddess  Athena."  ^ 


prized  addition  to  our  knowledge  of  Greek  music.    See  an  article  entitled  ' 
by  Reginald  Lister,  in  the  Nineteenth  Century  for  February,  1895. 
1  Already  briefly  described  on  p.  266. 


Delphi,"' 


OLYMPIA   AND    TEMPLE    OF  ZEUS   OLYMPIUS.  479 

It  was  built  in  the  Doric  order,  of  marble  from  the  neighboring 
Pentelicus.  This  temple  is  regarded  as  the  finest  specimen  of 
Greek  architecture.  The  art  exhibited  in  its  construction  is  an  art 
of  ideal  perfection.  After  standing  for  more  than  two  thousand 
years,  and  having  served  successively  as  a  Pagan  temple,  a 
Christian  church,  and  a  Mohammedan  mosque,  it  finally  was 
made  to  serve  as  a  Turkish  powder-magazine,  in  a  war  with  the 
Venetians,  in  1687.  During  the  progress  of  this  contest  a  bomb 
ignited  the  magazine,  and  more  than  half  of  the  wonderful  master- 
piece was  shivered  into  fragments.  The  front,  though  greatly 
impaired,  is  still  standing,  and  is  the  most  prominent  feature  of 
the  Acropolis  at  the  present  time.-^  Even  in  its  ruined  state  the 
structure  constitutes  the  most  highly  prized  memorial  that  we 
possess  of  the  builders  of  the  ancient  world.^ 

Olympia  and  the  Temple  of  Zeus  Olympius. — The  sacred 
plain  of  the  Alpheus  in  Elis  was,  as  we  have  learned,  the  spot 
where  were  held  the  renowned  Olympian  games.  Here  was  raised 
a  magnificent  temple  to  Zeus  Olympius,  and  round  it  were  grouped 
a  vast  number  of  shrines,  treasure-houses,  porticos,  and  various 
other  structures  (see  Frontispiece). 

For  many  centuries  these  buildings  adorned  the  consecrated 
spot  and  witnessed  the  recurring  festivals.  But  in  the  fifth  cen- 
tury of  our  era  the  Christian  Emperor  Theodosius  II.  ordered 
their  destruction,  as  the  monuments  of  paganism,  and  the  splen- 
did structures  were  given  to  the  flames.  Earthquakes,  landslips, 
and  the  floods  of  the  Alpheus  completed  in  time  the  work  of 
destruction  and  buried  the  ruins  beneath  a  thick  layer  of  earth. 


i  For  short  notices  of  other  buildings  at  Athens,  see  above,  pp.  235,  236,  and 
263-266. 

^  The  subject  of  the  wonderful  frieze,  designed  by  Pheidias,  running  round  the 
temple  was  the  procession  which  formed  the  most  important  feature  of  the  Athenian 
festival  known  as  the  Great  Panathenaea,  which  was  celebrated  every  four  years  in 
honor  of  the  patron  goddess  of  Athens  (p.  117).  The  larger  part  of  the  frieze  is 
now  in  the  British  Museum,  the  Parthenon  having  been  despoiled  of  its  coronal  of 
sculptures  by  Lord  Elgin.  Read  Lord  Byron's  The  Curse  of  Minerva.  To  the 
poet,  Lord  Elgin's  act  appeared  worse  than  vandalism. 


480        ARCHITECTURE,   SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTING. 

For  centuries  the  desolate  spot  remained  unvisited.  Finally,  in 
the  year  1829,  during  the  War  of  Greek  Independence,  the 
French  made  some  diggings  on  the  site ;  but  the  task  and  the 
honor  of  thoroughly  excavating  the  chief  remains  was  reserved 
for  the  German  Government  (1875-1881).  The  sites  of  no  less 
than  forty  buildings  were  uncovered.  Among  these  were  the 
temple  of  Zeus  Olympius  and  that  of  Hera.  The  sanctuary  of 
Zeus  was  built  in  the  Doric  style  and  was  richly  decorated  with 
sculptures.  The  Heraeum  was  a  sort  of  museum-temple,  where 
were  reserved  many  precious  relics,  amongst  which  was  the  cele- 
brated chest  of  Cypselus  (p.  94).  It  was  on  the  site  of  this  build- 
ing that  was  found  the  invaluable  Hermes  of  Praxiteles  (p.  492). 

The  Mausoleum  at  Halicarnassus.  —  This  structure  was  another 
of  the  Seven  Wonders  of  the  World.  It  was  a  monumental  tomb 
designed  to  preserve  the  memory  of  Mausolus,  king  of  Caria,  who 
died  352  B.C.  Its  erection  was  prompted  by  the  love  and  grief  of 
his  wife  Artemisia.  The  combined  genius  of  the  most  noted  artists 
of  the  age,  among  whom  was  the  renowned  sculptor  Scopas,  exe- 
cuted the  wish  of  the  queen.  The  monument  was  decorated  with 
a  multitude  of  statues  and  figures  in  relief;  while  surmounting  it 
was  the  statue  of  Mausolus,  standing  in  a  marble  chariot  drawn 
by  four  horses. 

The  chief  remains  of  the  Mausoleum  are  numerous  sculptures  dug 
up  on  the  site,  and  now  preserved  in  the  British  Museum.  These 
assure  us  that  the  admiration  of  the  ancients  was  not  accorded  to 
this  work  without  sufficient  reason.  It  is  the  traditions  of  this 
beautiful  structure  that  have  given  the  world  a  name  for  all  monu- 
ments of  unusual  magnificence  raised  in  memory  of  the  dead. 

Theatres  and  Other  Structures.  —  The  Greek  theatre  was  semi- 
circular in  form,  and  open  to  the  sky,  as  shown  in  the  accompany- 
ing cut  (Fig.  50) .  The  structure  comprised  three  divisions :  first,  the 
semicircle  of  seats  for  the  spectators ;  second,  the  orchestra,  or 
dancing-place  for  the  chorus,  which  embraced  the  space  between 
the  lower  range  of  seats  and  the  stage ;  and  third,  the  stage,  a 
narrow  platform  for  the  actors. 


THEATRES  AND    OTHER   STRUCTURES. 


481 


The  most  noted  of  Greek  theatres  was  the  Theatre  of  Dionysus 
at  x^thens,  which  was  the  model  of  all  the  others.  It  was  cut 
partly  in  the  native  rock  on  the  southeastern  slope  of  the  Acropo- 
Hs,  the  Greeks  in  the  construction  of  their  theatres  generally  tak- 
ing advantage  of  a  hillside.  There  were  about  one  hundred  rows 
of  seats,  the  lowest  one,  borderiag  the  orchestra,  consisting,  in 
later  times,  of  sixty-seven  marble  arm-chairs.    These  were  brought 


Fig.  50.     THE   THEATRE   OF   DIONYSUS   AT   ATHENS.     (From  a  photograph.) 

to  light  by  excavations  made  in  the  year   1862.     The  structure 
would  hold  thirty  thousand  spectators. 

In  this  connection  it  will  be  appropriate  to  speak  of  the  Cho- 
ragic  Monument  of  Lysicrates,  at  Athens,^  since  it  celebrated  a 
dramatic  victory  won  in  334  B.C.  by  Lysicrates  as  the  leader  of  a 
chorus  (see  p.  548).  The  structure  is  small,  being  only  thirty- 
four  feet  high.  It  is  one  of  the  earliest  and  most  beautiful  monu- 
ments left  to  us  of  the  Corinthian  order. 

1  Known  also  as  the  Lantern  of  Diogenes. 


482        ARCHlTFXrURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAWTING. 


II.    Sculpture  and  Painting. 

Beginnings  of  Greek  Sculpture.  —  The  relation  of  the  sculpt- 
ure of  the  Mycenaean  Age  — which  may  tentatively  be  assigned 

to  the  period  between  the 
sixteenth  and  the  twelfth 
centuries  b.c.^  —  to  that  of 
the  historic  period  in  Greece 
is  really  unknown.  It  is  pos- 
sible that  in  the  primitive 
art  of  that  early  time  we 
may  recognize  the  most  ar- 
chaic stage  of  the  art  of  the 
age  of  Pheidias.  It  possi- 
bly represents  the  first  artis- 
tic strivings  of  the  Hellenic 
genius,  the  first  rude  begin- 
nings of  the  most  perfect 
art  that  the  world  has  ever 
.seen.  But  this  is  not  yet  a 
matter  of  knowledge.  It 
is  possible,  as  a  recent  critic 
has  said,  that  the  works  of 
primitive  art  that  have  been 
exhumed  at  Hissarlik,  My- 
cenae, Tiryns,  Orchomenus, 
and  other  places  in  the 
lands  of  the  Eastern  Medi- 
terranean, have  no  closer 
historic  relation  to  the  later 
art  of  the  Hellenes  than 
the  specimens  of  carving  and  pottery  dug  from  the  mounds  of 
the  valleys  of  the  Ohio  and  the  Mississippi  bear  to  the  art  of  the 
race  whose  cities  now  fill  those  regions.     Until  this  question  has 

1  See  p.  23,  n.  3. 


Fig.  51.      CHORAGIC    MONUMENT   OF    LYSIC- 
RATES.     (The  uppermost  part  is  a  restoration.) 


INFLUENCE    OF   THE   GYMNASTIC  ART.  483 

been  settled  beyond  all  possibility  of  doubt,  the  history  of  Greek 
sculpture  must  take  its  start  in  the  seventh  or  sixth  century  B.C. 

A  second  question,  namely,  What  was  the  relation  of  Greek  art 
of  the  sixth  century  to  that  of  the  Orient  ?  admits  of  a  more  defi- 
nite answer  than  can  yet  be  given  to  the  first.  The  earliest  art  in 
Greece  to  which  we  can  without  hesitation  apply  the  term  "  Hel- 
lenic," exhibits  distinct  marks  of  Oriental  influence.  From  both 
Egypt  and  Assyria,  by  the  way  of  the  countries  of  Asia  Minor  and 
through  Phoenicia,  the  early  Greek  artist  received  models  in  gold, 
silver,  ivory,  and  other  material,  decorative  designs,  and  a  knowl- 
edge of  technical  processes.  But  this  was  all.  The  Greek  was 
never  a  servile  imitator.  His  true  artistic  feeling  caused  him  to 
reject  everything  unnatural  and  grotesque  in  the  designs  and 
models  of  the  Eastern  artists,  while  his  kindling  genius  breathed 
into  the  rigid  figures  of  the  Oriental  sculptor  the  breath  of  life, 
and  endowed  them  with  the  beauty  of  the  living  form  and  the 
grace  of  suggested  movement.  From  the  beginning  of  the  sixth 
century  B.C.  forward  to  the  fifth  we  can  trace  clearly  the  growing 
excellence  of  Greek  sculpture,  until  it  blooms  in  the  supreme 
beauty  of  the  art  of  the  Periclean  Age. 

Circumstances  that  hastened  the  Development  of  Greek 
Sculpture :  Influence  of  the  Gymnastic  Art.  —  The  Greeks 
in  the  most  primitive  times  represented  their  gods  by  symbols, 
such  as  stones  and  pillars.  Later,  these  were  replaced  by 
statues  of  wood.  These  figures  were  rude  and  stiff.  Dsedalus 
is  said  to  have  been  the  first  to  have  improved  upon  these  ^early 
forms.  "The  statues  he  made  were  Hke  living  beings;  they 
saw,  they  walked.  It  was  he  who  first  opened  their  eyes, 
unbound  their  legs  and  their  arms."  ^ 

It  was  not  a  Daedalus,  but  a  variety  of  concurring  causes,  which 
inspired  the  rigid  forms  of  the  early  Greek  artists  with  a  living  soul. 
As  we  have  already  said,  the  Greek  artistic  genius  was  first  stirred 

1  Oiodorus  Siculus,  quoted  by  CoUignon,  Manual  of  Greek  Archceology,  p.  104 
(Wright's  translation).  Daedalus  is,  of  course,  only  the  Greek  personification  of 
♦he  early  growth  and  development  of  Greek  sculpture. 


484        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTING. 

by  impulses  and  suggestions  from  the  Orient.  Then  very  early, 
as  early  as  the  eighth  century  b.c,  bronze  and  marble  were  very 
generally  substituted  for  wood.  Through  this  change  in  the  mate- 
rial wrought  upon,  the  development  of  sculpture  was  quickened. 

Still  another  circumstance  hastened  the  advance  of  the  art. 
It  became  usual,  towards  the  latter  part  of  the  sixth  century  b.c, 
to  set  up  images  of  the  victors  in  the  Olympian  games.  The 
grounds  at  Olympia  became  crowded  with  "  a  band  of  chosen 
youth  in  imperishable  forms."  Now,  in  representing  the  figures 
of  the  gods,  it  was  thought,  if  not  impious,  at  least  presumptuous. 


Fig.  52.     THE    WRESTLERS. 

(•'  Particularly  were  the  garnet  promotive  of  sculpture,  since  they  afforded  the 
sculptor  living  models  for  his  art."  —  Page  52.) 

to  change  materially  the  conventional  forms  ;  and  thus  a  certain 
Egyptian  rigidity  was  imparted  to  all  the  productions  of  the  artist. 
But  in  the  representation  of  the  forms  of  mere  men,  the  sculptor 
was  bound  by  no  conventionalism,  being  perfectly  free  to  exercise 
his  skill  and  genius  in  handling  his  subject.  Progress  and  im- 
provement now  became  possible. 

In  still  another  way  did  the  Olympian  contests  and  the  exer- 


THE  ARCHAIC  PERIOD    TO    THE  PERSIAN  WAR.      485 

cises  of  the  gymnasia  exert  a  most  helpful  mfluence  upon  Greek 
sculpture.  They  afforded  the  artist  unrivalled  opportunities  for 
the  study  of  the  human  form.  "  The  whole  race,"  as  Symonds 
says,  "  lived  out  its  sculpture  and  its  painting,  rehearsed,  as  it 
were,  the  great  works  of  Pheidias  and  Polygnotus,  in  physical  exer- 
cises, before  it  learned  to  express  itself  in  marble  or  in  color."  ^ 

As  the  sacred  buildings  increased  in  number  and  costliness, 
the  services  of  the 
artist  were  called 
into  requisition 
for  their  adorn- 
ment. At  first  the 
temple  held  only 
the  statue  of  the 
god ;  but  after  a 
time  it  became, 
as  we  have  already 
seen,  a  sort  of 
national  museum, 
—  a  repository  of 
the  artistic  treas- 
ures of  the  state. 
The  entablature, 
the  pediments, 
the  intercolumnia- 
tions  of  the  build- 
ing, and  every  niche  of  the  interior  of  the  shrine,  as  well  as 
the  surrounding  grounds  and  groves,  were  peopled  with  statues 
and  groups  of  figures,  executed  by  the  most  renowned  artists, 
and  representing  the  national  deities,  the  legendary  heroes, 
victors  at  the  public  games,  or  incidents  in  the  life  of  the 
state  in  which  piety  saw  the  special  interposition  of  the  god  in 
whose  honor  the  shrine  had  been  raised. 

The  Archaic  Period,  down  to  the  Persian  War.  —  The  oldest 


Fig.  53.      PERSEUS    SLAY  :,S  ^GON    MEDUSA.      (A 

metope  from  Selinus,  showing  an  early  stage  of  Greek  art.) 


1  See  Fig.  52 ;  also  Figs.  14  and  56. 


486        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,   AND  PAINTING. 


,'/'( 


\  4i 


^rrri 


Fig.  54.  STELE  OF  ARISTION. 
(Example  of  archaic  Attic  sculpt- 
ure.) 


remains  of  Greek  sculpture  are  speci- 
mens of  carvings  in  relief.  Among  the 
most  important  of  these  memorials  are 
the  sculptures  from  one  of  the  temples 
of  the  ancient  city  of  Selinus  in  Sicily. 
These  date  from  about  600  B.C.  The 
accompanying  cut  of  a  sculptured 
metope  (Fig.  53)  exhibits  the  imperfec- 
tions of  the  sculptor's  art  at  this 
period.^  The  figures  are  conventional 
and  rigid,  and  show  clearly  the  marks 
of  Assyrian  influence.  A  long  interval 
separates  these  figures  from  the  graceful 
forms  of  the  frieze  of  the  Athenian 
Parthenon. 

Another  interesting  specimen  of  this 
archaic  phase  of  Greek  sculpture  is 
seen  in  the  "  stele  of  Aristion  "  (Fig. 
54),  discovered  in  Attica  in  1832,  and 
which  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  "  first 
attempts  of  Attic  sculpture."  The 
carving  is  in  low  relief,  and  was  painted, 
the  color  being  still  well  preserved. 
The  date  of  this  work  is  placed  at 
about  500  B.C.  A  sort  of  Assyrian 
rigidity  still  binds  the  Hmbs  of  the 
figure  and  a  certain  archaism  of  man- 
ner characterizes  the  whole,  still  there 
are  suggestions  of  the  grace  and  free- 
dom of  a  truer  and  higher  art. 

Still  a  third  monument  of  the  art  of 
the  period  preceding  that  of  the  bloom 
of  Greek  sculpture  is  preserved  to  us 

1  After  the  manner  of  this  period,  the  sculptures 
were  painted. 


h 


PERIOD    OF  PERFECTION  OF  GREEK  SCULPTURE.     487 

in  the  celebrated  figures  of  the  temple   at  ^gina,  discovered  in 
i8i  I,  and  now  to  be  seen  in  the  Museum  of  Munich  (Fig.  55).   The 


Fig.  55.     PEDIMENT   OF  THE  TEMPLE   AT   /EG.iJA.      (A  restoration.) 

exact  date  of  these  sculptures  is  unknown,  but  they  are  believed  to 
have  been  executed  just  after  the  battle  of  Salamis.     They  are 

"the  most  beautiful  specimens  of 
Greek  art  in  the  archaic  age  now  in 
existence."  Though  in  them  art  has 
not  yet  freed  itself  from  the  conven- 
tionahsm  and  rigidity  of  the  earliest 
types,  still  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the 
technical  skill  of  the  artist  is  growing, 
that  his  hand  is  becoming  freer,  and 
that  his  touch  is  more  confident. 

The  Period  of  Perfection  of 
Greek  Sculpture  :  the  Age  of  Phei- 
dias.  —  Greek  sculpture  was  at  its  best 
during  the  last  half  of  the  fifth  century 
B.C.  We  can  here  do  nothing  more 
than  mention  three  or  four  of  the 
greatest  sculptors  that  contributed  to 
the  glory  of  the  age,  and  point  out 
THROWING  THE  DISCUS,  ^^at  the  world  regards  as  their  mas- 

QUOIT.      (Discobolus.)  .  ° 

terpieces. 

Myron,  whose  best  work  was  probably  executed  about  460  B.C., 
was   a   contemporary  of  Pheidias.      His  works  were  chiefly   in 


Fig.  56. 
OR 


488        ARCHirECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTING. 

bronze.  They  were  strikingly  life-like.  One  of  his  most  cele- 
brated pieces  was  the  Discobolus  or  "Discus-thrower."  The 
accompanying  cut  (Fig.  56)  is  a  copy  in  marble  of  the  bronze 
original.^ 

But  the  most  pre-eminent  sculptor  of  this  period  of  perfection 
was  Pheidias.  His  name  was  almost  the  only  one  among  Greek 
sculptors  which  really  lived  in  the  memory  and  imagination  of 
the  Middle  Ages.     Pheidias  was  an  Athenian,  and  was  born  about 


Fig.  57,   .ATHENIAN    YOUTH    IN    PROCESSION.     (From  the  frieze  of  the  Parthenon.) 

488  B.C.     He  dehghted  in  the  beautiful  myths  and  legends  of  the 
Heroic  Age,  and  from  these  often  drew  subjects  for  his  art. 

Pheidias  being  an  architect  as  well  as  sculptor,  his  patron 
Pericles  gave  into  his  hands  the  general  superintendence  of 
those  magnificent  buildings  with  which  he  persuaded  the 
Athenians  to  adorn  their  city.     It  was  his  genius  which,  as  already 

1  Almost  all  the  masterpieces  of  the  Greek  sculptors  have  perished ;  they  are 
known  to  us  only  through  Roman  copies.  But  to  these  copies  are  attributed  by 
archaeologists  a  special  value,  since  they  represent,  in  the  language  of  Furtwaengler, 
"  that  pick  of  the  masterpieces  of  the  classical  epoch  which  pleased  ancient  taste 
and  connoisseurship  in  the  times  of  the  highest  culture." 


PERIOD    OF  PERFECTION  OF  GREEK  SCULPTURE.     489 


mentioned,  created  the  wonderful  figures  of  the  pediments  and 
the  frieze  of  the  Parthenon.^ 

The  most  celebrated  of  his  co- 
lossal sculptures  were  the  statue 
of  Athena  within  the  Parthenon, 
and  that  of  Olympian  Zeus  in  the 
temple  at  Olympia.  The  statue 
of  Athena  was  of  gigantic  size, 
being  about  forty  feet  in  height, 
and  was  constructed  of  ivory 
and  gold,  the  hair,  weapons,  and 
drapery  being  of  the  latter  mate- 
rial. One  hand  of  the  goddess 
rested  upon  a  richly  carved 
shield,  while  the  other  held  aloft 
an  ivory  statue  of  Victory,  itself 
a  masterpiece.  On  her  feet  were 
golden  sandals. 

The  statue  of  Olympian  Zeus 
was  also  of  ivory  and  gold.  It 
was  sixty  feet  high,  and  represent- 
ed the  god  seated  on  his  throne. 
The  hair,  beard,  and  drapery  were 
of  gold.  The  eyes  yere  bril- 
liant stones.  Gems  of  great  value 
decked  the  throne,  and  figures 
of  exquisite  design  were  sculp- 
tured on  the  golden  robe.  The 
colossal  proportions  of  this  won- 
derful  work,  as  well  as  the  lofty    ^^^^-  f  • ,  '''TTJ'''^''^T\-  k^'"""  ' 

■'  statue  found  at  Athens  in  1880,  which  is  sup- 

yet  benign  aspect  of  the  COUnte-         posed  to  be  a  copy,  executed   in  the   second 

nance,  harmonized  well  with  the      ""^^^^  °^  °"^  ^'^'  °^  *^^  '^°'°"^'  ^^^^"«  "^^ 

Athena  by  Pheidias,  described   in  the  text.) 


1  That  is  to  say,  the  designs  were  his ;  but  a  great  part  of  the  actual  sculpturing 
must  have  been  done  by  other  hands,  working  under  the  direction  of  the  master 
mind. 


490 


ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND   PAINTUVG. 


popular  conception  of  the  majesty  and  grace  of  the  "  father  of 
gods  and  men."  It  was  thought  a  great  misfortune .  to  die  with- 
out having  seen  the  Olympian  Zeus.^  The  statue  was  in  existence 
for  eight  hundred  years.  It  is  believed  to  have  been  carried  to 
Constantinople,  and  to  have  perished  there  in  a  conflagration  in 
the  fifth  century  a.d. 

Pheidias  also  executed  other  works  in  both  bronze  and  marble. 
He  met  an  unworthy  fate.  First  he  was 
accused  of  having  stolen  a  part  of  the  gold 
put  in  his  hands  for  the  statue  of  Athena 
in  the  Parthenon.  This  charge  was  dis- 
proved by  the  golden  drapery  being  taken 
from  the  statue  and  weighed.  Then  he 
was  prosecuted  on  another  charge.  Upon 
the  shield  at  the  feet  of  the  statue  of 
Athena  in  the  Parthenon,  among  the  figures 
in  the  representation  of  a  battle  between 
the  Athenians  and  the  Amazons,  Pheidias 
introduced  a  portrait  of  himself  and  also 
that  of  his  patron  Pericles.  On  account  of 
this  indiscretion,  and  also  doubtless  because 
of  a  jealous  desire  to  discredit  Pericles,^ 
certain  persons  at  Athens  caused  the  artist  to  be  prosecuted  on 
the  charge  of  sacrilege.     He  died  in  prison,(432  B.C.). 

At  the  same  time  that  Pheidias  was  executing  his  ideal  repre- 
sentations of  the  gods,  Polycleitus  the  Elder,  whose  home  was  at 


Fig.  59.     THE    OLYMPIAN 
ZEUS   BY    PHEIDIAS. 


1  "  Pheidias  avowed  that  he  took  his  idea  from  the  representation  which  Homer 
gives  in  the  first  book  of  the  Iliad  in  the  passage  thus  translated  by  Pope ;  — 

"  '  He  spake,  and  awful  bends  his  sable  brow, 
Shakes  his  ambrosial  curls,  and  gives  the  nod, 
The  stamp  of  fate  and  sanction  of  the  god. 
High  heaven  with  reverence  the  dread  signal  took, 
And  all  Olympus  to  the  centre  shook.' " 

—  Bulfinch's  Age  of  Fable. 

When  Pheidias  had  finished  his  work,  so  tradition  tells,  he  prayed  Zeus  to 
give  a  token  if  the  statue  pleased  him.  Straightway  a  thunderbolt  from  heaven 
fell  upon  the  temple  floor,  by  which  sign  Pheidias  knew  that  his  work  was  accepted. 

2  See  p.  256,  n.  3. 


PERIOD    OF  PERFECTION  OF  GREEK  SCULPTURE.     491 


Argos,  was  producing  his  renowned  bronze  statues  of  athletes. 
Among  his  pieces  was  one  representing  a  spear-bearer,  which  was 
regarded  as  so  perfect  as  to  be  known  as  "  the  Rule." 

Polycleitus  also  executed  some  statues  of  gods  and  heroes, 
among  which  his  Hera  was  regarded  as  his  masterpiece.  This 
was  a  gold  and  ivory 
statue  of  the  god- 
dess for  her  temple 
at  Argos.  It  was 
surpassed  in  size  and 
excellence  only  by 
the  great  creations 
of  Pheidias. 

Another  name  be- 
longing to  this  pe- 
riod of  bloom  has 
been  given  a  new 
lustre  by  the  fresh 
art  treasures  which 
have  been  recovered 
through  the  exten- 
sive excavations  be- 
gun in  1875  by 
German  archaeolo- 
gists at  Olympia,  in 
Elis.^  Among  the 
sculptures  exhumed 
is  one   of  Nike   or 

"Virtnrv'VFV  ^n^      '^'^-  ^°'      RESTORED    NIKE    OR    VICTORY    OF    P/EONIUS. 
victory     ^rig.  00;  (Found  at  Olympia.     Mier  Boetitc her.) 

by  the  artist  Paeo- 

nius.  This  beautiful  statue  was,  according  to  a  tradition  current  in 
the  time  of  Pausanias,^  set  up  at  Olympia  by  the  Messenians  in 
commemoration  of  the  loss  and  humiliation  inflicted  upon  the 


1  See  Boetticher's  Olympia. 

2  Pausanias.  v.  26. 


492        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTINO. 

Spartans,  their  age-long  oppressors,  by  the  affair  at  Sphacteria,  dur- 
ing the  course  of  the  Peloponnesian  War  (p.  314). 

Scopas,  Praxiteles,  and  Lysippus  (fourth  century  b.c). — 
Though  Greek  sculpture  attained  its  highest  perfection  in  the 
fifth  century,  still  the  following  century  produced  sculptors  whose 
work  possessed  qualities  of  rare  excellence.  Among  the  names 
of  this  period  those  of  Scopas,  Praxiteles,  and  Lysippus  hold  a 
chief  place. 

Scopas  (flourished  about  395-350  b.c.)  has  already  been  men- 
tioned as  one  of  the  sculptors  who  cut  the  figures  that  decorated 
the  Mausoleum  at  Halicarnassus  (p.  480).  He  also  worked  on 
the  sculptures  of  a  celebrated  temple  of  Athena  at  Tegea,  and  to 
him  is  further  ascribed  by  some  the  famous  composition  called 
the  Niobe  Group}  of  which  a  well-known  copy  is  to  be  seen  to-day 
in  the  Museum  at  Florence. 

But  the  most  eminent  sculptor  of  this  period  was  Praxiteles 
(period  of  activity  about  360-340  B.C.),  of  whom  it  has  been 
said  that  he  "  rendered  into  stone  the  moods  of  the  soul."  Among 
his  chief  pieces  may  be  mentioned  the  Cnidian  Aphrodite,  the 
Satyr,  Eros,  and  Hermes.  The  first  of  these,  which  stood  in  the 
temple  of  Aphrodite  at  Cnidus,  was  regarded  by  the  ancients  as 
the  most  perfect  embodiment  of  the  goddess  of  beauty.  Pilgrim- 
ages were  made  from  remote  countries  to  Cnidus  for  the  sake  of 
looking  upon  the  matchless  statue.  Many  copies  were  set  up  in 
different  cities.  About  two  centuries  ago,  excavations  at  Rome 
brought  to  light  a  beautiful  statue,  supposed  to  be  a  copy  of  the 
original  Cnidian  Aphrodite,  by  Cleomenes,  who  lived  during  the 
first  or  second  century  b.c.^ 

The  Hermes  of  Praxiteles  was  set  up  in  the  Heraeum  at  Olympia. 
To  the  great  joy  of  archaeologists  this  precious  memorial  of  an- 
tiquity was  discovered  by  the  German  excavators  of  Olympia  in 

1  Other  authorities  assign  this  work  to  Praxiteles, 

2  This  is  the  so-called  Venus  de  Medici.  The  name  comes  from  the  circum- 
stance of  the  statue  having  been  kept  for  some  time  after  its  discovery  in  the  palace 
of  the  Medici  at  Rome. 


THE  PERGAMEAN  SCHOOL, 


493 


1877,  so  that  now  we  possess  an  undoubtedly  original  work  of  one 
of  the  great  masters  of  Greek  sculpture.' 

Lysippus,  a  native  of  Sicyon,  is  renowned  for  his  works  in  bronze. 
His  period  of  activity  falls  in  the  last  Jialf  of  the  fourth  century  B.C. 
His  statues  were  in  great  demand.  Tradition  avers,  though 
doubtless  with  exaggeration,  that  fifteen  hundred  pieces  of  his 
work  were  to  be  counted  in  the  various  i^ities  of  Hellas.  Many 
of  his  figures  were 
of  colossal  size. 
Alexander  gave 
the  artist  many 
orders  for  statues 
of  himself,  and 
also  of  the  heroes 
that  fell  in  his 
campaigns.^ 

The  Pergamean 
School  (third  and 
second  centuries 
B.C.). — We  have 
already  learned 
that  Pergamus  in 
Asia  Minor  be- 
came, during  the 
third  century  b.c,  one  of  the  centres  of  literary  and  artistic 
activity  of  the  Graeco-Oriental  world  (p.  464,  n.  2).  Among  the 
memorials  of  this  capital  we  have  now  a  series  of  most  inter- 
esting sculptures,  which  were  exhumed  on  the  ancient  Acropolis 
during  the  years  1 878-1 886.  The  sculptures,  which  are  in  high 
relief  and  of  colossal  size,  decorated  the  four  sides  of  the  substruc- 
tion of  a  great  altar  dedicated  to  Zeus  the  Deliverer,  in  commemo- 
ration of  the  victory  of  the  Greeks  over  the  Gallic  invaders  of  Asia 

1  Fig.  61. 

2  The  statue  of  Sophocles,  of  which  we  give  a  cut  on  p.  510,  is  one  of  the  most 
famous  portrait  statues  of  Lysippus. 


61.      HERMES    WITH    THE    INFANT    DIONYSUS.      (An 
original  work  of  Praxiteles,  found  in  1877  at  Olynnpia.) 


494        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTING. 

Minor  (p.  460).  The  altar  is  supposed  to  have  been  built  by  King 
Eumenes  II.  (197-159  B.C.).  The  subject  of  the  sculpturings  was 
the  mythical  contest  of  the  gods  with  the  earth-born  giants,  which 
struggle  seemed  to  the  Greeks  the  counterpart  of  their  own  terrific 
fight  with  the  uncouth  and  savage  Gauls.  The  reliefs  are  now  in 
the  Berlin  Museum.  Taken  as  a  whole,  they  must  be  given  a 
prominent  place  in  the  series  of  Greek  sculptural  monuments  which 
the  ravages  of  time  have  spared  to  us. 


Fig.  62.     A    RESTORATION    OF  THE  GREAT  ALTAR  OF  ZEUS  SOTER  AT  PERGAMUS. 


The  School  of  Rhodes.  —  The  period  which  marked  this  great 
activity  in  art  at  Pergamus  saw  the  rise  also  at  Rhodes,  at  this  time 
the  commercial  emporium  of  the  Eastern  Mediterranean  (p.  456, 
n.  2) ,  of  a  celebrated  school  of  sculpture.  The  city  became  a  great 
art  centre,  second  only  to  Athens.  Its  streets  and  gardens  and 
public  edifices  were  literally  crowded  with  statues.  Hundreds  met 
the  eye  on  every  hand.  The  island  became  the  favorite  resort  of 
artists,  and  the  school  there  founded  acquired  a  wide  renown. 


THE   SCHOOL    OF  RHODES. 


495 


Very  many  of  the  prized  works  of  Grecian  art  in  our  museums 
were  executed  by  members  of  this  Rhodian  school. 

One  of  the  most  noted  of  the  Rhodian  sculptors  was  Chares, 
who  was  the  designer  of  the  celebrated  Colossus  of  Rhodes  (about 


lillllll!lll!!l!lllllllllllllililll!lJ|l||l!ieii!S!l!!ii!!llffl 

Fig.  63.     THE    LAOCOON    GROUP. 


280  B.C.).     This  work  was  reckoned  as  one  of  the  Seven  Won- 
ders of  the  World. ^ 

But  the  most  remarkable  piece  of  sculpture  attributed  to  the 

1  Its  height  was  one  hundred  and  seven  feet,  and  a  man  could  barely  encircle 
with   his  arms  the  thumb  of  the  statue.     The  expense  of  its  erection  (about 


4%        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND   PAINTING. 

school  of  Rhodes  is  the  celebrated  group  known  as  the  Laoco'dn, 
found  at  Rome  in  1506,  and  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Vatican. 
This  is  generally  thought  to  be  the  work  of  three  Rhodian  sculptors, 
—  Agesander,  Athenodorus,  and  Polydorus.  The  order  for  the 
work  was  probably  given  by  the  Roman  emperor  Titus  (a.d. 
79-81),  as  the  group  adorned  his  palace  on  one  of  the  hills  of 
Rome.  Of  this  masterpiece  it  has  been  said  that  "  it  expresses 
physical  pain  and  passion  better  than  any  other  existing  group  of 
statuary."  ^ 

III.    Painting. 

Introductory.  —  Although  the  Greek  artists  attained  a  high 
degree  of  excellence  in  painting,  still  they  never  brought  the  art  to 
that  perfection  which  they  reached  in  sculpture.  One  reason  for 
this  less  perfect  development  of  the  art  was  that  paintings  were 
never,  like  statues,  objects  of  adoration ;  hence  less  attention  was 
directed  to  them.^ 

With  the  exception  of  antique  vases,  a  few  patches  of  mural 
decoration,  and  colored  sculpturings,  all  specimens  of  Greek  paint- 
ing have  perished.'^     Not  a  single  work  of  any  great  painter  of 

$500,000)  was  met  by  the  sale  of  spoils  obtained  by  the  Rhodians  in  war.  After 
standing  about  half  a  century,  it  was  overthrown  by  an  earthquake.  Nine  hundred 
years  later  it  was  broken  up  and  sold  for  old  metal. 

1  Another  noted  marble  group  of  the  Rhodian  school  is  known  as  the  Farnese 
Bull,  now  in  the  Naples  Museum.  It  was  discovered  in  the  sixteenth  century  in 
the  Baths  of  Caracalla  at  Rome,  whither  it  had  been  carried  from  Rhodes  in  the 
time  of  Augustus. 

2  The  influence  of  religion  upon  the  painter's  art  is  illustrated  by  the  Italian 
Renaissance,  when  painting  entered  the  service  of  the  Church.  See  Mediceval  and 
Modern  History,  pp.  345,  346. 

3  A  word  may  here  be  said  respecting  the  use  of  color  by  the  Greeks  in  connec- 
tion with  sculpture  and  architecture.  It  is  difficult  for  us  to  believe  that  they  painted 
their  statues  and  the  surface  of  their  stone  buildings;  but  the  recent  discovery 
of  statues  and  carved  stones  with  the  colors  upon  them  still  well  preserved  has 
placed  the  matter  beyond  all  doubt.  But  in  architecture,  in  later  times  especially, 
the  Greek  artist  made  only  a  moderate  use  of  color.  It  was  employed  merely  to 
bring  out  in  stronger  relief  the   sculptural  features  and  to  subdue  the  dazzling 


POLYGNOTUS.  497 

antiquity  has  survived  the  accidents  of  time.  Consequently  our 
knowledge  of  Greek  painting  is  derived  chiefly  from  the  de- 
scription by  the  ancient  writers  of  renowned  works,  and  their 
anecdotes  of  great  painters.  These  classical  stories  are  always 
epigrams  of  criticism,  and  thus  possess  a  technical  as  well  as 
a  literary  and  historical  value.  For  this  reason,  we  shall  repeat 
some  of  them. 

Polygnotus.  —  Polygnotus  (flourished  475-455  B.C.)  has  been 
called  the  Prometheus  of  painting,  because  he  was  the  first  to  give 
fire  and  animation  to  the  expression  of  the  countenance.^  "  In 
his  hand,"  it  is  affirmed,  "the  human  features  became  for  the  first 
time  the  mirror  of  the  soul."  Of  a  Polyxena,^  painted  by  this 
great  master,  it  was  said  that  *'  she  carried  in  her  eyelids  the 
whole  history  of  the  Trojan  War." 

The  Athenians  conferred  upon  Polygnotus  the  rights  of  citizen- 
ship, and  he,  out  of  gratitude,  pointed  upon  the  walls  of  some  of 
their  public  buildings  the  grandest  frescoes  the  world  had  ever 
looked  upon.  The  fall  of  Ilium  and  the  battle  of  Marathon  were 
among  the  subjects  he  represented.  On  the  walls  of  a  building 
at  Delphi,  he  painted  a  celebrated  series  of  pictures  representing 
the  descent  of  Odysseus  into  Hades. 

Zeuxis  and  Parrhasius.  —  These  great  artists  lived  and  painted 
in  the  later  years  of  the  fourth  century  B.C.  A  favorite  and  famil- 
iar story  preserves  their  names  as  companions,  and  commemo- 

whiteness  of  the  marble.  Red  and  blue  were  the  colors  chiefly  used,  red  being 
employed  for  backgrounds  and  blue  for  high  and  well-lighted  surfaces. 

1  We  possess  many  specimens  of  Greek  vase  painting  earlier  than  the  time  of 
Polygnotus.  But  these  exhibit  the  art  in  a  comparatively  rudimentary  stage. 
"  There  was  abundance  of  invention  in  attitudes  and  action.  There  was  passion- 
ate love  of  accuracy  in  details  of  costume  and  of  form.  Art  was  essentially  illus- 
trative of  the  myths  and  legends  which  had  so  strong  a  hold  on  the  imagination 
of  the  people.  What  it  lacked  was  expression  and  dignity.  It  had  the  power  of 
expression  only  so  far  as  it  is  exhibited  in  action.  The  form  of  expression  which 
reveals  motives  and  character  it  had  not." —  MURRAY,  Handbook  of  Greek  Archce- 
ology,  p.  361. 

2  Polyxena  was  a  daughter  of  the  Trojan  Priam,  famous  for  her  beauty  and 
sufferings.     She  was  sacrificed  as  an  atonement  to  the  shade  of  Achilles. 


498        ARCHITECTURE,  SCULPTURE,  AND  PAINTING. 

rates  their  rival  genius.  Zeuxis,  such  is  the  story,  painted  a  cluster 
of  grapes  which  so  closely  imitated  the  real  fruit  that  the  birds 
pecked  at  them.  His  rival,  for  his  piece,  painted  a  curtain. 
Zeuxis  asked  Parrhasius  to  draw  aside  the  veil  and  exhibit  his 
picture.  "  I  confess  I  am  surpassed,"  generously  admitted  Zeuxis 
to  his  rival ;  "  I  deceived  birds,  but  you  have  deceived  the  eyes  of 
an  experienced  artist." 

Zeuxis  executed  orders  for  paintings  for  sacred  buildings  in 
Greece  and  Italy,  for  his  fame  was  not  confined  to  a  single  land. 
In  his  latter  years  he  refused  all  remuneration  for  his  pieces, 
esteeming  them  beyond  price  in  money. 

Apelles.  —  Apelles,  who  has  been  called  the  "Raphael  of  an- 
tiquity," was  the  court-painter  of  Alexander  the  Great.  He  was 
such  a  consummate  master  of  the  art  of  painting,  and  carried  it  to 
such  a  state  of  perfection,  that  the  ancient  writers  spoke  of  it  as 
the  "  Art  of  Apelles."  Among  his  masterpieces  was  a  picture  of 
Aphrodite,  which  represented  the  goddess  rising  from  the  waves, 
with  her  figure  veiled  in  a  mist  of  falling  drops  of  water  wrung 
from  her  hair.  Centuries  after  the  death  of  Apelles  this  paititing 
was  carried  off  to  Italy  by  the  Roman  conquerors,  and  for  a  time 
adorned  a  temple  at  Rome,  erected  in  honor  of  Julius  Caesar. 

Several  well-worn  stories  illustrative  of  the  estimation  in  which 
he  was  held  by  his  contemporaries  are  told  of  Apelles.  One  of 
these  is  respecting  a  contest  between  Apelles  and  some  rival 
artists,  in  which  horses  were  the  objects  represented. 

Perceiving  that  the  judges  were  unfriendly  to  him,  and  partial, 
Apelles  insisted  that  less  prejudiced  judges  should  pronounce  upon 
the  merit  of  the  respective  pieces,  demanding,  at  the  same  time, 
that  the  paintings  be  shown  to  some  horses  that  were  near. 
When  brought  before  the  pictures  of  his  rival,  the  horses  exhibited 
no  concern ;  but  upon  being  shown  the  painting  of  Apelles,  they 
manifested  by  neighing  and  other  intelligent  signs  their  instant 
recognition  of  the  companions  the  great  master  had  created. 

Still  another  anecdote  has  given  the  world  one  of  its  best  prov- 
erbs.    A  cobbler  criticised  the  shoe-latchet  of  one  of  the  artist's 


APELI.es.  499 

figures.  Apelles,  recognizing  that  what  had  caught  the  practised 
eye  of  the  man  was  a  real  defect,  straightway  amended  it.  Then 
the  cobbler  ventured  to  offer  some  criticisms  on  one  of  the  legs. 
Thereupon  Apelles  sharply  rebuked  him  for  passing  outside  his 
province,  by  replying,  "  Cobbler,  keep  to  your  last." 

In  the  hands  of  Apelles  Greek  painting  attained  its  highest 
excellence.  After  him  the  art  declined,  and  no  other  really  great 
name  appears. 

References.  —  CoUignon,  A  Manual  of  Greek  Ai-chceology  (translated  from 
the  P'rench  by  John  Henry  Wright,  1 886);  has  valuable  references  in  connec- 
tion with  each  chapter.  Murray,  Handbook  of  Greek  A rchcsology  {i2><)2)  and 
A  History  of  Greek  Sculpture  (revised  edition,  1890),  2  vols.  Perrot  and 
Chipiez,  History  of  Art  in  Primitive  Greece  (from  the  French,  1894),  vols, 
i.  and  ii. ;  on  "  Mycenian  Art."  Mitchell,  History  of  Ancient  Sculpture  (1883), 
pp.  137-669.  Yyi€)[A,  Excursions  in  Greece  {iKOVii'C[i<tYxtYic\C)^  ch.  iv.;  gives 
the  results  of  excavations  made  on  the  Acropolis  of  Athens  during  the  years 
1 882- 1 889,  Furtwaengler,  Masterpieces  of  Greek  Sculpture  (from  the  Ger- 
man).    For  additional  references  see  Bibliography  at  the  end  of  the  book. 


500  GREEK  LITERATURE. 


CHAPTER    XXrX. 

GREEK   LITERATURE. 
I.   Introductory. 

The  Greeks  as  Literary  Artists.  —  In  literature  the  Greeks 
far  surpassed  every,  other  people  of  antiquity.  The  degree  of 
excellence  attained  by  them  in  poetry,  in  oratory,  and  in  history 
has  scarcely  been  surpassed  by  any  modern  people  or  race. 
Here,  as  in  art,  they  are  still  the  teachers  of  the  world. 

It  was  that  same  exquisite  sense  of  fitness  and  proportion  and 
beauty  which  made  the  Greeks  artists  in  marble  that  also  made 
them  artists  in  Language.  "  Of  all  the  beautiful  things  which  they 
created,"  says  Professor  Jebb,  "  their  own  language  was  the  most 
beautiful."  This  language  they  wrought  into  epics  and  lyrics  and 
dramas  and  histories  and  orations,  as  incomparable  in  form  and 
beauty  as  their  temples  and  statues.  The  excellences  of  Greek 
Hterature  —  fitness,  symmetry,  proportion,  clearness  of  outline  — 
are  the  same  as  those  that  characterize  Greek  art. 

Even  the  Greek  philosophers  arranged  and  expressed  their  ideas 
and  speculations  with  such  regard  to  the  rules  of  literary  art,  that 
many  of  their  productions  are  fairly  entitled  to  a  place  in  litera- 
ture proper.  Especially  is  this  true  of  the  earlier  Greek  philoso- 
phers, who  wrote  in  hexameter  verse,  and  of  Plato,  in  whose 
works  the  profoundest  speculations  are  embodied  in  the  most 
perfect  literary  form.  But  as  Greek  philosophy,  viewed  as  a 
system  of  thought,  had  a  development  distinct  from  that  of 
Greek  literature  proper,  we  shall  deal  with  it  in  a  separate  chap- 


THE  HOMERIC  POEMS.  501 

ter,  contenting  ourselves  here  with  merely  pointing  out  the  un- 
usually close  connection  in  ancient  Greece  between  philosophy 
and  literature. 

Periods  of  Greek  Literature.  —  Greek  literature,  for  the  time 
covered  by  our  history,  is  usually  divided  into  three  periods,  as 
follows  :  ( i)  The  Period  before  475  B.C.  ;  (2)  The  Attic  or  Golden 
Age  (475-300  B.C.)  ;   (3)   The  Alexandrian  Age  (300-146  B.C.). 

The  first  period  gave  birth  to  epic  and  lyric  poetry  ;  the  second, 
to  history,  oratory,  and,  above  all,  to  dramatic  Hterature  ;  while  the 
third  period  was  one  of  decHne,  during  which  the  productions  of 
the  preceding  epochs  were  worked  over  and  commented  upon,  or 
feebly  imitated.  Occasionally,  however,  a  gleam  of  real  genius 
brings  back  for  a  moment  the  splendors  of  the  departing  day. 

II.  The  Period  before  475  b.c. 

The  Homeric  Poems  :  their  Date  and  Authorship. — The  earliest 
specimens  of  Greek  poetry,  as  we  have  already  learned  (p.  57), 
are  the  so-called  ''  Homeric  poems,"  consisting  of  the  Iliad  and 
the  Odyssey.  The  first  poem,  which  is  by  far  the  superior  of  the 
two,  must  be  pronounced  "  the  masterpiece  of  Greek  literature ; 
perhaps  of  all  Hteratures."  Before  being  committed  to  writing,  it 
had  probably  been  preserved  and  transmitted  orally  for  several 
generations.  It  has  been  translated  into  all  languages,  and  has 
been  read  with  an  ever  fresh  interest  by  generation  after  gen- 
eration for  more  than  two  thousand  years.  Tradition  avers  that 
Alexander  slept  with  a  copy  beneath  his  pillow,  —  a  copy  pre- 
pared especially  for  him  by  his  preceptor  Aristotle,  and  called  the 
"casket  edition,"  from  the  jewelled  box  in  which  Alexander  is 
said  to  have  kept  it.  We  preserve  it  quite  as  sacredly  in  all  our 
courses  of  classical  study. 

The  age  in  which  the  poem  was  written  has  been  called  the 
Childhood  of  the  World.  The  work  is  characterized  by  the  fresh- 
ness and  vitaUty  of  youth.  The  influence  it  exerted  upon  the  men 
of  Hellas  is  felt  by  the  men  of  to-day.     It  has  made  warriors  as 


502 


GREEK  LITERATURE. 


as  well  as  poets.  It  incited  the  military  ambition  of  Alexander,  of 
Hannibal,  and  of  Caesar;  it  inspired  Virgil,  Dante,  and  Milton. 
All  epic  writers  have  taken  it  as  their  model. 

Until  the  rise  of  modern  German  criticism,  the  Iliad  and  the 
Odyssey  were  almost  universally  ascribed  to  a  single  bard  named 
Homer,  who  was  believed  to  have  lived  about  the  middle  of  the 
ninth  or  tenth  century  B.C.,  one  or  two  centuries  after  the  events 
commemorated  in  his  poems.  Though  tradition  represents  many 
cities  as  contending  for  the  honor  of 
having  been  his  birthplace,  still  he  was 
generally  regarded  as  a  native  of 
Smyrna,  in  Asia  Minor.  He  travelled 
widely  (so  it  was  believed),  lost  his 
sight,  and  then,  as  a  wandering  min- 
strel, sang  his  immortal  verses  to  admir- 
ing listeners  in  the  different  cities  of 
Hellas. 

But  at  the  close  of  the  last  century 
(in  1795)  ^^  German  scholar  Wolf, 
after  a  critical  study  of  the  two  Homeric 
poems,  declared  that  they  were  not, 
either  of  them,  the  work  of  a  single 
poet,  but  that  each  was  made  up  of  a 
large  number  of  earlier  short  lays,  or  ballads.  The  work  of  uniting 
these  separate  pieces  into  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey,  he  believed 
to  have  been  performed  under  the  direction  of  the  tyrant  Peisis- 
tratus  (see  p.  118). 

Wolfs  theory  opened  a  great  "Battle  of  the  Books."  Since 
his  day  there  has  been  no  lull  in  the  so-called  "  Homeric  contro- 
versy." At  present  there  are  two  chief  theories  respecting  the 
origin  of  the  poems.  The  one  maintains  that  they  are  the  work 
of  many  bards  of  different  ages  ;  the  other  regards  them  as  essen- 
tially the  creation  of  a  single  master-poet.  The  first  theory  sup- 
poses the  Iliad  to  be  a  growth  from  a  single  comparatively  short 
primary  epic,  the  Wrath  of  Achilles,  dating  from  pre-Dorian  times. 


Fig.  64.     HOMER. 


THE  HESIODIC  POEMS.  503 

It  generally  represents  this  archaic  central  epic  as  having  been 
composed  in  Greece  proper  by  Achaean  minstrels,  from  thence 
carried  by  immigrants  to  Asia  Minor,  and  there  developed  by 
^olian  and  Ionian  poets  into  the  Iliad  of  later  times.  It  ventures 
to  name  the  eleventh,  tenth,  and  ninth  centuries  B.C.  as  the  prob- 
able time  during  which  the  epic,  by  successive  expansions  and 
additions,  was  gradually  assuming  its  present  form.^ 

This  same  theory  likewise  represents  the  Odyssey  as  a  sort  of 
mosaic,  pieced  together  out  of  pre-existing  lays  or  epics  ;  but  the 
unity  of  the  poem  being  so  much  more  manifest  than  in  the  case 
of  the  Iliad^  it  supposes  the  work  of  arranging  and  uniting  this 
pre-existing  material  to  have  been  done  by  a  single  hand. 

_The  second  theory  may  be  summarized  in  a  few  words.  As 
stated  by  one  of  its  ablest  and  most  recent  defenders,  it  maintains 
"  that  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey  are  neither  collections  of  short 
lays,  nor  expansions  of  an  original  brief  epic,  but  that,  on  the  whole, 
they  are  the  composition  of  a  poet,  —  the  golden  poet  Homer."  ^ 

The  Hesiodic  Poems.  —  Hesiod,  who  is  believed  to  have  lived 
towards  the  close  of  the  eighth  century  B.C.,  was  the  poet  of 
nature  and  of  real  life,  especially  of  peasant  life,  in  the  dim 
transition  age  of  Hellas.  The  Homeric  bards  sing  of  the  deeds 
of  heroes,  and  of  a  far-away  time  when  gods  mingled  with  men.^ 
Hesiod  sings  of  common  men,  and  of  every-day,  present  duties. 
His  greatest  poem,  a  didactic  epic,  is  entitled  Works  and  Days. 
This  is,  in  the  main,  a  sort  of  farmer's  calendar,  in  which  the  poet 
points  out  to  the  husbandman  the  lucky  and  unlucky  days  for 
doing  certain  kinds  of  work,  gives  him  minute  instructions  respect- 
ing farm  labor,  descants  upon  justice,  eulogizes  industry,  and  inter- 
sperses among  all  his  practical  lines  homely  maxims  of  morality 

1  See  Leaf,  Companion  to  the  Iliad. 

2  Lang,  Homer  and  the  Epic,  p.  422.  (1893.)  It  should  be  said  that  Andrew 
Lang,  in  the  view  put  forward  in  this  work,  represents  the  poets  and  not  the  critics. 
His  theory  of  the  single  authorship  of  the  poems  is  not  held  by  any  considerable 
number  of  Homeric  scholars. 

'^  Respecting  the  primitive  civilization  depicted  in  the  Iliad  and  Odyssey,  see 
above,  p.  29. 


504  GREEK  LITERATURE. 

and  beautiful  descriptive  passages  of  the  changing  seasons.  Virgil's 
Georgics  was  based  upon  the  Works  and  Days. 

Another  work,  called  the  Theogony,  is  also  usually  ascribed  to 
Hesiod.  This  poem  has  been  well  described  as  being  "  an  author- 
ized version  of  the  genealogy  of  the  Greek  gods  and  heroes." 

Lyric  Poetry :  Pindar.  —  As  epic  poetry,  represented  by  the 
Homeric  and  Hesiodic  poems,  was  the  characteristic  production 
of  the  earlier  part  of  the  first  period  of  Greek  Literature,  so  was 
lyric  poetry  the  most  noteworthy  product  of  the  latter  part  of  the 
period. 

The  ^olian  island  of  Lesbos  was  the  hearth  and  home  of  the 
earlier  lyric  poets.  The  songs  of  these  Lesbian  bards  fairly  glow 
and  quiver  with  ardent  passion.  Among  the  earliest  of  these 
singers  were  Alcaeus  and  Sappho  (end  of  the  seventh  and  first 
half  of  the  sixth  century  B.C.).  No  higher  praise  of  Alcaeus  is 
needed  than  mention  of  the  fact  that  the  Roman  poet  Horace 
was  so  pleased  with  his  verses  that  he  borrowed  sometimes  entire 
odes  of  the  Lesbian  bard. 

The  poetess  Sappho  (flourished  about  610-570  B.C.)  was 
exalted  by  the  Greeks  to  a  place  next  to  Homer.  Plato  calls 
her  the  Tenth  Muse.  "  Of  all  the  poets  of  the  world,"  writes 
Symonds,  "  of  all  the  illustrious  artists  of  literature,  Sappho  is  the 
one  whose  every  word  has  a  peculiar  and  unmistakable  perfume, 
a  seal  of  absolute  and  inimitable  grace."  Although  her  fame 
endures,  her  poetry,  excepting  a  few  precious  verses,  has  long 
since  perished. 

Anacreon  (period  of  poetical  activity  about  550-500  B.C.)  was 
a  courtier  at  the  time  of  the  Greek  tyrannies.  He  was  a  native  of 
Ionia,  but  passed  much  of  his  time  as  a  favored  minstrel  at  the 
court  of  Polycrates  of  Samos  (p.  95),  and  at  that  of  the  tyrant 
Hipparchus  at  Athens.^ 

Simonides  of   Ceos   (556-467  b.c.)   lived   during    the   Persian 

1  Only  fragments  of  the  poetry  of  Anacreon  have  come  down  to  us.  The 
Anacreontea,  a  collection  of  sixty  short  poems  after  the  style  of  Anacreon,  are 
spurious,  having  been  composed  by  imitators  of  various  periods  of  antiquity. 


INFLUENCES  FAVOR  A    GREAT  LITERATURE.         505 

Wars.  He  composed  immortal  couplets  for  the  monuments  of 
the  fallen  heroes  of  Thermopylae  and  Salamis.  These  epigrams 
were  burned  into  the  very  soul  of  every  person  in  Hellas. 

But  the  greatest  of  the  Greek  lyric  poets,  and  perhaps  the 
greatest  of  all  lyric  poets  of  every  age  and  race,  was  Pindar 
(522-448  B.C.).  He  was  born  at  Thebes,  but  spent  most  of  his 
time  in  the  cities  of  Magna  Grsecia.  Such  was  the  reverence  in 
which  his  memory  was  held  that  when  Alexander,  one  hundred 
years  after  Pindar's  time,  levelled  the  city  of  Thebes  to  the  ground 
on  account  of  a  revolt,  the  house  of  the  poet  was  spared,  and  Jeft 
standing  amid  the  general  ruin  (p.  442).  The  greater  number  of 
Pindar's  poems  were  inspired  by  the  scenes  of  the  national  festivals. 
They  describe  in  lofty  strains  the  splendors  of  the  Olympian 
chariot-races,  or  the  glory  of  the  victors  at  the  Isthmian,  the 
Nemean,  or  the  Pythian  games. 

Pindar  insists  strenuously  upon  virtue  and  self-culture.  With 
deep  meaning,  he  says,  *'  Become  that  which  thou  art "  \  that  is, 
be  that  which  you  are  made  to  be. 


in.   The  Attic  or  Golden  Age  (475-300  b.c). 

Influences  Favorable  to  a  Great  Literature. — The  Golden 
Age  of  Greek  Literature  followed  the  Persian  Wars,  and  was,  in  a 
large  measure,  produced  by  them.  Every  great  literary  outburst 
is  the  result  of  a  profound  stirring  of  the  depths  of  national  life. 
All  Hellas  had  been  profoundly  moved  by  the  tremendous  struggle 
for  political  existence.  Athens  especially  had  hoped  all,  risked 
all,  achieved  all.  Her  citizens  now  felt  an  unwonted  exaltation  of 
life.  Hence  Athens  naturally  became  the  home  and  centre  of 
the  literary  activity  of  the  period.^ 

The  Attic  literature  embraces  almost  every  specimen  of  compo- 
sition, yet  the  drama,  history,  and  oratory  are  its  most  character- 
istic forms.     Especially  favorable  were  the  influences  of  the  time 

1  Respecting  the  influence  of  race  upon  Attic  culture,  see  above,  p.  loi, 


506  .  GREEK  LITERATURE. 

for  the  production  of  great  dramatic  works.  The  two  conditions, 
"  intense  activity  and  an  appreciative  audience,"  without  which,  it 
is  asserted,  a  great  drama  cannot  exist,  met  in  the  age  of  Pericles. 
Hence  the  unrivalled  excellence  of  the  Attic  drama,  the  noblest 
production  of  the  artistic  genius  of  the  Greeks. 

The  Greek  Drama  and  Dramatists. 

Origin  of  the  Greek  Drama.  —  The  Greek  drama,  in  both  its 
branches  of  tragedy  and  comedy,  grew  out  of  the  songs  and 
dances  instituted  in  honor  of  the  god  of  wine  —  Dionysus.^ 

Tragedy  (goat-song, 
possibly  from  the  ac- 
companying sacrifice 
of  a  goat)  sprang 
from  the  graver  songs, 
and  comedy  (village- 
song)  from  the  Hghter 
and  more  farcical 
ones.  Gradually,  re- 
cital and  dialogue 
Fig.  65.    BACCHIC  PROCESSION.  were     added,     there 

being  at  first  but  a 
single  speaker,  then  two,  and  finally  three,  which  last  was  the 
classical  number.  Thespis  (about  534  b.c)  is  said  to  have  intro- 
duced this  idea  of  the  dialogue,  hence  the  term  "  Thespian " 
applied  to  the  tragic  drama. 

Owing  to  its  origin,  the  Greek  drama  always  retained  a  religious 
character,  and  further,  presented  two  distinct  features,  the  chorus 
(the  songs  and  dances)  and  the  dialogue.  At  first,  the  chorus 
was  the  all-important  part ;  but  later  the  dialogue  became  the 
more  prominent  portion,  the  chorus,  however,  always  remaining 
an  essential  feature  of  the  performance.  Finally,  in  the  golden 
age  of  the  Attic  stage,  the  chorus  dancers  and  singers  were  care- 

1  The  same  as  the  Roman  Bacchus. 


( 


THE   SUBJECTS   OF   THE    TRAGIC  POETS.  507 

fully  trained,  at  great  expense,  and  the  dialogue  became  the 
masterpiece  of  some  great  poet,  —  and  then  the  Greek  drama, 
the  most  splendid  creation  of  human  genius,  was  complete. 

The  Subjects  of  the  Tragic  Poets. — The  tragic  poets  of 
Athens  drew  the  material  of  their  plays  chiefly  from  the  myths 
and  legends  of  the  heroic  age,  just  as  Shakespeare  for  many  of 
his  plays  used  the  legends  of  the  semi-historical  periods  of  his 
own  country  or  of  other  lands.  These  legendary  tales  they 
handled  freely,  so  changing,  coloring,  and  moralizing  them  as  to 
render  them  the  vehicle  for  the  conveying  of  great  ethical  lessons, 
or  of  profound  philosophical  ideas  regarding  the  divine  govern- 
ment of  the  world.  Indeed  the  mission  of  the  tragic  poets  was 
to  harmonize  the  fuller  knowledge,  the  truer  religious  feehng  of 
the  age,  with  the  ancient  traditions  and  myths,  —  to  reveal  the 
ethical  truth  which  the  old  stories  of  the  gods  and  heroes  con- 
tained, or  which  they  might  be  made  to  symbolize. 

The  Leading  Idea  of  Greek  Tragedy.  —  Symonds  believes  the 
fundamental  idea  of  Greek  tragedy  to  be  the  doctrine  of  Nemesis. 
This  doctrine  seems  to  have  been  evolved  out  of  the  old  idea  of 
the  Divine  Jealousy  (p.  54).  Just  as  we  have  softened  and 
moralized  the  old  Hebrew  idea  that  all  suffering  is  divine  punish- 
ment for  sin,  evolving  from  it  the  Christian  doctrine  of  affliction, 
which  regards  a  large  part  of  human  troubles  and  sufferings,  not  as 
penal  inflictions,  but  rather  as  trials  intended  as  a  means  of  spir- 
itual development ;  in  like  manner  the  Greeks  moralized  their 
unethical  views  of  the  cause  of  sudden  reverses  of  fortune,  of  sud- 
den downfalls,  and  came  to  hold  the  doctrine  that  it  is  not  mere 
prosperity  itself  which  arouses  the  anger  and  opposition  of  the 
gods,  but  the  pride  and  arrogance  usually  engendered  in  mortals 
by  over-great  prosperity. 

To  understand  how  the  Greeks  should  have  come  to  regard  in- 
solent self-assertion,  or  the  unrestrained  indulgence  of  appetite  or 
passion  as  the  most  heinous  of  sins,  we  must  recall  once  more  the 
legend  upon  the  front  of  the  Delphian  temple  —  "  Measure  in  all 
things."     As  proportion  was  the  cardinal  element  of  beauty  in  art, 


508 


GREEK  LITERATURE. 


so  wise  moderation  was  the  prime  quality  in  virtue.  Those  who 
moderated  not  their  desire  of  fame,  of  wealth,  of  dominion,  were 
the  most  impious  of  men,  and  all  such  the  avenging  Nemesis  failed 
not  to  bring,  through  their  own  mad  presumption  and  over-vault- 
ing ambition,  to  overwhelming  and  irretrievable  ruin.  The  results 
of  the  Persian  War  confirmed  the  Greeks  in  this  view  of  the  moral 
government  of  the  world ;  for  had  not  they  themselves  seen  most 
signally  punished  the  unbridled  ambition,  the  insolence,  the  pre- 
sumptuous impiety,  of  the  scourgers  of  the  Hellespont  and  the 
destroyers  of  the  temples  of  the  gods  ? 

We  shall  see  in  a  moment  how  this  idea  inspired  some  of  the 
greatest  of  the  Greek  dramas. 

The  Three  Great  Tragic  Poets.  —  There  are  three  great  names 
in  Greek  tragedy,  —  ^schylus,  Sophocles,  and  Euripides.     These 

dramatists  all  wrote  dur- 
ing the  splendid  period 
which  followed  the  victo- 
ries of  the  Persian  War, 
when  the  intellectual  life 
of  all  Hellas,  and  espe- 
cially that  of  Athens,  was 
strung  to  the  highest  ten- 
sion. This  lent  nervous 
power  and  intensity  to 
almost  all  they  wrote,  par- 
ticularly to  the  tragedies 
of  yEschylus  and  Sopho- 
cles. Of  the  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty-eight  dramas 
produced  by  these  poets, 
us :    all  the    others    have 


Fig.  66.     /ESCHYLUS. 


only   thirty-two    have   come   down   to 
perished  through  the  accidents  of  time. 

^schylus  (525-456  B.C.)  was  more  than  Shakespearian  in  the 
gloom  and  intensity  of  his  tragedies.  He  knew  how  to  touch  the 
hearts  of  the  generation  that  had  won  the  victories  of  the  Persian 


THE    THREE   GREAT    TRAGIC  POETS.  509 

War ;  for  he  had  fought  with  honor  both  at  Marathon  and  at  Sala- 
mis.  But  it  was  on  a  very  different  arena  that  he  was  destined  to 
win  his  most  enduring  fame.  Eleven  times  did  he  carry  off  the 
prize  in  tragic  composition.  The  Aftienians  called  him  the  "  Father 
of  Tragedy."  Pro7netheus  Bound  is  one  of  his  chief  works — "  one 
of  the  boldest  and  most  original  dramas,"  Ranke  declares,  "  that 
has  ever  been  written."  The  old  Promethean  myth  which  ^s- 
chylus  makes  the  ground-work  of  this  tragedy  was  immoral ;  that 
is,  it  represents  the  Supreme  Zeus  as  treating  the  Titan  arbitrarily 
and  unjustly.^  But  ^schylus  moralizes  the  tale.  He  makes  prom- 
inent Prometheus'  faults  of  impatience  and  self-will,  and  shows 
that  his  sufferings  are  but  the  just  penalty  of  his  presumption  and 
self-assertion. 

Another  of  the  great  tragedies  of  yEschylus  is  his  Agamemnon, 
thought  by  some  to  be  his  masterpiece.  The  subject  is  the  crime 
of  Clytaemnestra  (p.  25).  It  is  a  tragedy  crowded  with  spirit- 
shaking  terrors,  and  filled  with  more  than  human  crimes  and  woes. 
Nowhere  is  portrayed  with  greater  power  the  awful  vengeance  with 
which  the  implacable  Nemesis  is  armed.^ 

The  theme  of  ^Eschylus'  Persce.  was  the  defeat  of  Xerxes  and 
his  host,  which  afforded  the  poet  a  good  opportunity  "  t«  state 
his  philosophy  of  Nemesis,  here  being  a  splendid  tragic  instance 
of  pride  humbled,  of  greatness  brought  to  nothing,  through  one 
man's  impiety  and  pride."  The  poet  teaches  that  "  no  mortal 
may  dare  raise  his  heart  too  high,"  —  that  "Zeus  tames  excessive 
lifting  up  of  heart." 

Sophocles  (about  496-405  b.c.)  while  yet  a  youth  gained  the 

1  In  punishment  for  having  stolen  fire  from  heaven  and  given  it  to  men,  and  for 
having  taught  them  the  arts  of  life,  the  Titan  Prometheus  is  chained  by  Zeus  to  a 
lonely  cliff  on  the  remote  shores  of  the  Euxine,  and  an  eagle  is  sent  to  feed  upon 
his  liver,  which  each  night  grows  anew, 

2  The  Agamemnon  forms  the  first  of  a  trilogy  ;  that  is,  a  series  of  three  dramas, 
the  other  pieces  being  entitled  the  ChoephorcB  and  the  Eumenides.  These  continue 
the  subject  of  the  Agamemnon,  so  that  the  three  really  form  a  single  drama  or  story. 
On  the  Greek  stage,  the  several  parts  of  the  trilogy  were  performed  successively  the 
same  day.  This  trilogy  of  ^schylus  is  the  only  one  from  the  ancient  stage  of  which 
all  the  parts  have  come  down  to  us. 


510 


GREEK  LITERATURE. 


prize  in  a  poetic  contest  with  .4ischylus  (468  p.c),  Cimon  being 
the  chief  umpire.  Plutarch  says  that  .^ischylus  was  so  chagrined 
by  his  defeat  that  he  left  Athens  and  retired  to  Sicily.     Sophocles 

now  became  the  leader  of 
tragedy  at  Athens.  In  almost 
every  contest  he  carried  away 
the  first  prize.  He  lived 
through  nearly  a  century,  a 
century,  too,  that  comprised 
the  most  brilliant  period  of 
the  hfe  of  Hellas.  His  dramas 
were  perfect  works  of  art. 

The  central  idea  of  his 
dramas  is  the  same  as  that 
which  characterizes  those  of 
^schylus  ;  namely,  that  self- 
will  and  insolent  pride  arouse 
the  righteous  indignation  of 
the  gods,  and  that  no  mor- 
tal can  contend  successfully 
against  the  will  of  Zeus.  But 
a  new  thought  appears,  which 
belongs  rather  to  the  Hebrew 
than  to  the  Hellenic  view  of 
life ;  namely,  the  educative 
and  purifying  effect  on  char- 
acter of  suffering.  The  chief 
works  of  Sophocles  are  CEdi- 
pus  Tyr annus,  (Edipus  Colo- 
neuSj  and  Antigone,  all  of 
which  are  founded  upon  the  old  tales  of  the  royal  line  of  Thebes 
(p.  19). 

Euripides  (480-406  B.C.)  was  a  more  popular  dramatist  than 
either  ^schylus  or  Sophocles,  ^schylus  was  too  lofty,  severe, 
and  earnest  a  poet  to  be  long  a  favorite  with  the  volatile  and 


Fig.  67.     SOPHOCLES. 


COMF.DY:   ARISTOPHANES. 


511 


pleasure-loving  Athenians.  They  tired  of  him  as  they  did  of  Aris- 
teides.  Nor  was  Sophocles  sensational  enough  to  please  them, 
after  the  state  of  exalted  religious  feeling  awakened  by  the  tremen- 
dous experiences  of  the  Persian  War  had  passed  away.  Euripides 
was  a  better  representative  than  either  of  these  of  the  Athenian  in 
his  normal  mood.  The  Athenian  cared  more  for  aesthetics  than 
ethics. 

The  fame  of  Euripides  passed  far  beyond  the  limits  of  Greece. 
Herodotus  asserts  that  the  verses  of  the  poet  were  recited  by  the 
natives  of  the  remote  country  of 
Gedrosia;  and  Plutarch  says  that 
the  Sicilians  were  so  fond  of  his 
lines  that  many  of  the  Athenian 
prisoners,  taken  before  Syracuse, 
bought  their  liberty  by  teaching 
their  masters  such  of  his  verses  as 
they  could  repeat  from  memory. 
Euripides  is  said  to  have  written 
nearly  one  hundred  plays,  of  which 
number,  however,  only  seventeen 
remain  to  us.  Almost  all  of  these 
are  based  on  incidents  detailed  in 
the  Argonautic,  Theban,  and  Trojan 
legends. 

Comedy  :  Aristophanes.  —  Foremost  among  all  writers  of  com- 
edy must  be  placed  Aristophanes  (about  450-385  b.c).  He 
introduces  us  to  the  every-day  life  of  the  least  admirable  classes 
of  Athenian  society.  Four  of  his  most  noted  works  are  the  Clouds, 
the  Knights^  the  Birds,  and  the  Wasps. 

In  the  comedy  of  the  Clouds,  Aristophanes  especially  ridicules 
the  Sophists,  a  school  of  philosophers  and  teachers  just  then  rising 
into  prominence  at  Athens,  of  whom  the  satirist  unfairly  makes 
Socrates  the  representative.  But  the  points  of  the  play  were  sus- 
ceptible of  a  general  appHcation.  "  Everything  that  deceived, 
'concealed,  shifted,  eluded,  was  symbolized  by  clouds." 


Fig.  68.     EURIPIDES. 


512  GREEK  LITERATURE. 

The  aim  of  the  Knights  was  the  punishment  and  ruin  of  Cleon, 
whom  we  already  know  as  one  of  the  most  conceited  and  insolent 
of  the  demagogues  of  Athens. 

The  play  of  the  Birds  is  "  the  everlasting  allegory  of  foolish 
sham  and  flimsy  ambition."  ^'  Cloud-Cuckootown,"  we  quote  the 
critic  Symonds,  "is  any  castle  in  the  air  or  South  Sea  Bubble 
which  might  take  the  fancy  of  the  Athenian  mob."  But  while 
having  a  general  application,  it  was  aimed  particularly  at  the  ambi- 
tious Sicilian  schemes  of  Alcibiades ;  for  at  the  time  the  play  ap- 
peared, the  Athenian  army  was  before  Syracuse,  and  elated  by  the 
good  news  daily  arriving,  the  Athenians  were  building  the  most 
gorgeous  air-castles,  and  indulging  in  the  most  extravagant  day- 
dreams of  universal  dominion. 

In  the  Wasps,  the  poet  satirizes  the  proceedings  in  the 
Athenian  law-courts,  by  showing  how  the  great  citizen-juries 
were  t)efooled  by  the  demagogues. 

But  Aristophanes  was  something  more  than  a  master  of 
mere  mirth-provoking  satire  and  ridicule :  along  with  his 
exquisite  sense  of  the  humorous  he  possessed  a  nature  most 
delicately  sensitive  to  the  finer  emotions.  Many  of  the  choruses 
of  his  pieces  are  inexpressibly  tender  and  beautiful.^ 

History  and  Historians. 

Poetry  is  the  first  form  of  literary  expression  among  all 
peoples.  So  we  must  not  be  surprised  to  find  that  it  was  not 
until  several  centuries  after  the  composition  of  the  Homeric 
poems  —  that  is,  about  the  sixth  century  B.C.  —  that  prose- 
writing  appeared  among  the  Greeks.  Historical  composition 
was  then  first  cultivated.  We  can  speak  briefly  of  only  three 
historians  —  Herodotus,  Thucydides,  and  Xenophon  —  whose 
names  were  cherished  among  the  ancients,  and  whose  writings 
are  highly  valued  and  carefully  studied  by  ourselves. 

1  Menander  (342-292  B.C.). —  Menander  was,  after  Aristophanes,  the  most  noted 
of  Greek  comic  poets.  He  was  the  leader  of  what  is  known  as  the  New  Comedy. 
His  plays  were  very  popular  with  the  Romans. 


HERODOTUS. 


513 


Herodotus. —  Herodotus  (about  484-425  b.c),  bom  at 
Halicarnassus,  in  Asia  Minor,  is  called  the  "Father  of  History." 
He  travelled  over  much  of  the  then  known  world;  visited 
Italy,  Egypt,  and  Babylonia;  and  describes  as  an  eye-witness, 
with  a  never-faiUng  vivacity  and  freshness, 
the  wonders  of  the  different  lands  he  had 
seen.  Herodotus  lived  in  a  story-telling  age, 
and  he  is  himself  an  inimitable  story-teller. 
To  him  we  are  indebted  for  a  large  part  of 
the  tales  of  antiquity  —  stories  of  men  and 
events  which  we  never  tire  of  repeating.  He 
was  over-credulous,  and  was  often  imposed 
upon  by  his  guides  in  Egypt  and  at  Babylon ; 
but  he  describes  with  great  care  and  accuracy 
what  he  himself  saw.  It  is  sometimes  very 
difficult,  however,  to  determine  just  what  he 
actually  did  see  with  his  own  eyes  and  experi- 
ence in  his  own  person ;  for  it  seems  certain, 
that,  following  the  custom  of  the  story-tellers 
of  his  time,  he  often  related  as  his  own  personal  adventures  the 
experiences  of  others,  yet  with  no  thought  of  deceiving.  In  this 
he  might  be  Hkened  to  our  modern  writers  of  historical  romances. 

The  central  theme  of  his  great  History  is  the  Persian  Wars,  the 
struggle  between  Asia  and  Greece.  Around  this  he  groups  the 
several  stories  of  the  nations  of  antiquity.  In  the  pictures  which 
the  artist-historian  draws,  we  see  vividly  contrasted,  as  in  no  other 
writings,  the  East  and  the  West,  Persia  and  Hellas. 

The  fundamental  idea  of  the  whole  history,  the  conception 
which  shapes  and  colors  the  main  narrative,  is  the  same  as 
that  which  inspires  the  tragedies  of  ^Eschylus,  —  the  doctrine  of 
Nemesis.  This  is  expressed  in  the  admonition  which  Artabanus 
is  represented  as  giving  to  his  nephew  Xerxes,  when  the  king  was 
meditating  his  expedition  against  Greece  :  "  The  god  loves  to  cut 
down  all  towering  things  ...  the  god  suffers  none  but  himself  to 
be  haughty.     Rash  haste  ever  goes  before  a  fall ;  but  self-restraint 


Fig.  69.     HERODOTUS. 


514 


GREEK  LITERATURE. 


brings  blessings,  not  seen  at  the  moment  perhaps,  yet  found  out 
in  due  time."  ^  Possessed  by  this  idea,  the  historian  becomes  a 
dramatist,  and  his  history  a  world-tragedy.  In  the  ethical  les- 
son it  teaches,  it  is  practically  an  expansion  of  the  ^Eschylean 
drama  of  the  Persce. 

Besides  this  leading  Herodotean  idea  of  Nemesis,  there  are 
two  other  important  conceptions  entering  into  the  historian's  phi- 
losophy of  the  universe.  These  are  the  notion  of  the  Divine  Envy 
(p.  19),  and  the  general  doctrine  of  the  interference  of  the  gods 
in  human  affairs.     Herodotus  had  a  naive  belief  in  omens,  oracles, 

and  miracles  generally,  and 
this  leads  him  constantly 
to  attribute  to  preternat- 
ural causes  the  most  ordi- 
nary events  of  history. 
His  belief  in  the  old  im- 
moral doctrine  of  the  Envy 
of  the  gods,  —  which  he 
retains  along  with  his  ma- 
turer  views  of  Nemesis, 
—  causes  him  to  delight 
in  telhng  stories  illustra- 
tive of  the  vicissitudes  of 
life  and  the  instability  of 
fortune,  as  witness  his  tales 
of  Polycrates  and  Croesus.^ 
Thucydides. — Thucydides  (about  471-400  b.c),  though  not 
so  popular  an  historian  as  Herodotus,  was  a  much  more  philo- 
sophical writer.  He  was  born  near  Athens.  An  interesting  story 
is  told  of  his  youth,  which  must  be  repeated,  though  critics  have 
pronounced  it  fabulous.  The  tale  is  that  Thucydides,  when  only 
fifteen,  was  taken  by  his  father  to  hear  Herodotus  recite  his 
history  at  the  Olympian  games,  and  that  the  reading  and  the 

1  Herodotus,  vii.  lo.     Quoted  by  Professor  Jebb,  Greek  Literature,  p.  105. 

2  See  above,  pp.  94,  114,  and  131. 


Fig.  70.     THUCYDIDES. 


XENOPHON.  515 

accompanying  applause  caused  the  boy  to  shed  tears,  and  to 
resolve  to  become  an  historian. 

Respecting  the  manner  in  which  Thucydides,  in  the  course  of 
the  Peloponnesian  War,  incurred  the  displeasure  of  the  Athenians 
and  was  sent  into  the  exile  which  afforded  him  leisure  to  compose 
his  history  of  that  great  struggle,  we  have  already  spoken  (p.  324). 
Through  the  closest  observation  and  study,  he  qualified  himself 
to  become  the  historian  of  what  he  from  the  first  foresaw  would 
prove  a  memorable  war.  *'I  lived,"  he  says,  "through  its  whole 
extent,  in  the  very  flower  of  my  understanding  and  strength,  and 
with  a  close  application  of  my  thoughts,  to  gain  an  exact  insight 
into  all  its  occurrences."  As  we  have  already  learned,^  Thucydi- 
des died  before  his  task  was  completed.  His  work  is  consid- 
ered a  model  of  historical  writing.  In  fairness,  truthfulness, 
clearness,  and  philosophical  insight,  Thucydides  has  never  been 
surpassed  as  a  narrator  and  interpreter  of  events.  Demosthenes 
read  and  re-read  his  writings  to  improve  his  own  style  ;  and  the 
greatest  orators  and  historians  of  modern  times  have  been  equally 
diligent  students  of  the  work  of  the  great  Athenian. 

Xenophon.  — Xenophon  (about  445-355  b.c.)  was  an  Athenian, 
and  is  known  both  as  a  general  and  a  writer.  The  works  that 
render  his  name  so  familiar  are  his  Anabasis,  a  simple  yet  thrill- 
ing narrative  of  the  expedition  of  the  Ten  Thousand  Greeks 
(p.  398)  ;  and  his  Memorabilia,  or  "  Recollections  "  of  Socral|ps. 
This  work  by  his  devoted  yet  by  no  means  brilliant  pupil  is  the 
most  faithful  portraiture  that  we  possess  of  that  philosopher. 

Xenophon's  Cyropcedia,  or  "  Education  of  Cyrus,"  is  essentially 
an  historical  romance,  which  portrays  not  alone  the  youth,  but  the 
whole  life  of  Cyrus  the  Great,  besides  delineating  the  manners 
and  institutions  of  the  Persians.  It  has  been  classed  with  Plato's 
Reptiblic  and  More's  Utopia. 

1  See  above,  p.  386,  n.  2. 


516  GREEK  LITERATURE. 


Oratory'. 

Influence  of  Democratic  Institutions.  —  The  art  of  oratory 
among  the  Greeks  was  fostered  and  developed  by  the  generally 
democratic  character  of  their  institutions.  In  the  public  assem- 
blies of  the  free  cities  all  questions  that  concerned  the  state  were 
discussed  and  decided.  The  debates,  as  we  have  seen,  were,  in 
the  democratic  cities,  open  to  all.  The  gift  of  eloquence  secured 
for  its  possessor  a  sure  pre-eminence,  and  conferred  a  certain 
leadership  in  the  affairs  of  state.  The  great  jury  courts  of  Athens 
(p.  262)  were  also  schools  of  oratory ;  for  every  citizen  there 
was  obliged  to  be  his  own  advocate  and  to  defend  his  own  case.' 
Hence  the  attention  bestowed  upon  public  speaking,  and  the  high 
degree  of  perfection  attained  by  the  Greeks  in  the  difficult  art  of 
persuasion.  "  It  was  the  prevalence  of  the  habit  of  public  speak- 
ing," says  Grote,  "  that  was  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  the 
intellectual  eminence  of  the  nation  generally."  Almost  all  the 
prominent  Athenian  statesmen  were  masters  of  oratory. 

Antiphon,  Lysias,  Isocrates,  and  Isaeus. — Antiphon  (480-411 
B.C.)  was  regarded  by  the  Greeks  as  the  first  of  the  ten  Athenian 
orators.  Lysias  (458-?378  B.C.),  Isocrates  (436-338  B.C.),  and 
Isaeus  (b.  about  420  b.c.)  were  all  noted  representatives  of  the  art 
of  political  or  forensic  oratory,  and  forerunners  of  Demosthenes. 
We  should  call  Isocrates  a  rhetorician  instead  of  an  orator,  as  his 
discourses  (which  for  the  most  part  were  written  for  others  to 
deliver)  were  intended  to  be  read  rather  than  spoken.  The 
Roman  Cicero  was  his  debtor  and  imitator. 

Demosthenes.  —  It  has  been  the  fortune  of  Demosthenes  (385- 
322  B.C.)  to  have  his  name  become  throughout  the  world  the  syn- 
onym of  eloquence.  The  labors  and  struggles  by  which,  according 
to  tradition,  he  achieved  excellence  in  his  art  are  held  up  anew  to 

1  The  oratory  of  the  Athenian  law-courts  was  not  always,  it  must  be  confessed, 
of  a  very  high  order.  To  move  the  sympathies  of  the  jurors,  the  speakers  too 
often  had  recourse  to  the  low  arts  of  the  demagogue.  Yet  in  general  these  courts 
certainly  developed  a  popular  taste  and  aptitude  for  public  speaking. 


DEMOS  THENES.  5 1 7 

each  generation  of  youth  as  guides  of  the  path  to  success.  His 
first  address  before  the  public  assembly  was  a  complete  failure, 
owing  to  defects  of  voice  and  manner.  With  indomitable  will  he 
set  himself  to  the  task  of  correcting  these.  He  shut  himself  up 
in  a  cave,  and  gave  himself  to  the  dihgent  study  of  Thucydide*. 
That  he  might  not  be  tempted  to  spend  his  time  in  society,  he 
rendered  his  appearance  ridiculous  by  shaving  one  side  of  his  head. 
To  correct  a  stammering  utterance,  he  spoke  with  pebbles  in  his 
mouth,  and  broke  himself  of  an  ungainly  habit  of  shrugging  his 
shoulders  by  speaking  beneath  a  suspended  sword.  To  accustom 
himself  to  the  tumult  and  interruptions  of  the  public  assembly,  he 
declaimed  upon  the  noisiest  sea-shore. 

These  are  some  of  the  many  stories  told  of  the  world's  greatest 
orator.  There  is  doubtless  this  much  truth  in  them  at  least  — 
that  Demosthenes  attained  success,  in  spite  of  great  discourage- 
ments, by  persevering  and  laborious  effort.  It  is  certain  that  he 
was  a  most  diligent  student  of  Thucydides,  whose  great  history  he 
is  said  to  have  known  by  heart.  More  than  sixty  of  his  orations 
have  been  preserved.  "  Of  all  human  productions  they  present 
to  us  the  models  which  approach  the  nearest  to  perfection." 

The  latter  part  of  the  life  of  Demosthenes  is  intertwined  with 
that  of  another  and  rival  Athenian  orator,  ^schines.  For  his  ser- 
vices to  the  state,  the  Athenians  awarded  to  Demosthenes  a  crown 
of  gold.  ^Eschines,  along  with  other  enemies  of  the  orator,  at- 
tacked this  measure  of  the  assembly  and  brought  the  matter  to  a 
trial.  All  Athens  and  strangers  from  far  and  near  gathered  to 
hear  the  rival  orators ;  for  every  matter  at  Athens,  as  we  have 
seen,  was  decided  by  a  great  debate.  Demosthenes  made  the 
grandest  effort  of  his  life.  His  address,  known  as  the  Oration 
on  the  Crown,  has  been  declared  to  be  "  the  most  polished  and 
powerful  effort  of  human  oratory."  It  was  an  unanswerable  de- 
fense by  Demosthenes  of  his  whole  policy  of  opposition  to  Philip 
of  Macedon,  and  of  his  counsel  to  the  Athenians  to  try  doubtful 
battle  with  him  on  the  fatal  field  of  Chaeronea  (p.  435).  The 
refrain  that  runs  through  all   the   speech  is  this  :  It  is  better  to 


518  GREEK  TJTERATURE. 

have  fought  at  Chaeronea  and  to  have  left  our  dead  on  the  lost 
field,  than  never  to  have  undertaken  battle  in  defense  of  the  lib- 
erties of  Hellas.  It  was  ours  to  do  our  duty,  the  issue  rested  with 
the  gods.^  ^schines  was  completely  crushed.  He  left  Athens 
and  became  a  teacher  of  oratory  at  Rhodes.^ 

Respecting  the  several  orations  of  Demosthenes  against  Philip 
of  Macedon,  and  the  death  of  the  eloquent  patriot,  we  have 
already  spoken  (pp.  432  and  459). 

IV.    The  Alexandrian  Age  (300-146  b.c). 

Character  of  the  Literature.  —  The  Alexandrian  period  of 
Greek  literature  embraces  the  time  between  the  break-up  of 
Alexander's  empire  and  the  conquest  of  Greece  by  Rome  (300- 
146  B.C.).  During  this  period  Alexandria  in  Egypt  was  the  centre 
of  literary  activity,  hence  the  term  "  Alexandrian,"  applied  to  the 
literature  of  the  age.  The  great  museum  and  library  of  the 
Ptolemies  afforded  in  that  capital  such  facilities  for  students  and 
authors  as  existed  in  no  other  city  in  the  world. 

But  the  creative  age  of  Greek  literature  was  over.  With  the 
loss  of  political  liberty  and  the  decay  of  faith  in  the  old  religion, 
literature  was  cut  off  from  its  sources  of  inspiration.  Consequently, 
the  Alexandrian  literature  lacked  freshness,  spontaneity,  originality. 
It  was  imitative,  critical,  and  learned.  The  writers  of  the  period 
were  grammarians,  commentators,  and  translators  —  in  a  word, 
book-worms. 

Works  and  Writers.  —  One  of  the  most  important  literary  un- 
dertakings of  the  age  was  the  translation  of  the  Old  Testament  of 

1  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  oration  was  given  in  the  year  330  B.C., 
when  the  Macedonian  power  was  supreme,  with  Alexander  lord  of  both  the  East 
and  the  West. 

2  ^schines  is  said  to  have  once  gathered  his  disciples  about  him,  and  to  have 
read  to  them  the  oration  of  Demosthenes  that  had  proved  so  fatal  to  himself. 
Carried  away  by  the  torrent  of  its  eloquence,  his  pupils,  unable  to  restrain  their 
enthusiasm,  burst  into  applause.  "  Ah !  "  said  ^schines,  who  seemed  to  find 
solace  in  the  fact  that  his  defeat  had  been  at  the  hands  of  so  worthy  an  antagonist, 
"you  should  have  heard  the  wild  beast  himself  !  " 


CONCLUSION:    GR^CO-ROMAN  WRITERS.  519 

the  Hebrew  Scriptures  into  Greek.  From  the  traditional  number 
of  translators  (seventy)  the  version  is  known  as  the  Septuagint. 
This  great  work,  as  we  have  seen  (p.  467),  was  carried  on  under 
the  direction  and  patronage  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus. 

It  was  also  during  the  reign  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  that  Mane- 
tho  wrote,  from  the  monuments,  his  history  of  Egypt.  Just  about 
the  same  time  Berosus  compiled,  for  one  of  .the  Seleucidae,  the 
chronicles  of  Chaldaea.  We  possess  only  fragments  of  these  works, 
but  these  have  a  high  historical  value. 

Among  the  poets  of  the  period  one  name,  and  only  one,  stands 
out  clear  and  pre  eminent.  This  is  that  of  Theocritus,  a  Sicilian 
idyllist,  who  wrote  at  Alexandria  under  Ptolemy  Philadelphus. 
His  idyls   are  beautiful  pictures   of  Sicilian  pastoral  life. 

During  the  Alexandrian  period  science  was  cultivated  by  Greek 
scholars  with  considerable  success ;  but  the  names  most  noted  in 
this  department  will  more  properly  find  a  place  in  the  following 
chapter  on  Greek  philosophy  and  science. 

Conclusion  :  Grseco-Roman  Writers.  —  After  the  Roman  con- 
quest of  Greece,  the  centre  of  Greek  literary  activity  shifted  from 
Alexandria  to  Rome.  Hence  Greek  literature  now  passes  into 
what  is  known  as  its  Grseco-Roman  Period  (146  B.C.-527  a.d.). 

The  most  noted  historical  writer  of  the  first  part  of  this  period 
was  Polybius  (about  203-121  B.C.),  who  wrote  a  history  of  the 
Roman  conquests  from  264  to  146  B.C.  His  work,  though  the 
larger  part  of  it  has  reached  us  in  a  mutilated  state,  is  of  great 
worth ;  for  Polybius  wrote  of  matters  that  had  become  history  in 
his  own  day.  He  had  lived  to  see  the  larger  part  of  the  world  he 
knew  absorbed  by  the  ever-growing  power  of  the  Imperial  City. 

Diodorus  Siculus  (lived  under  Augustus  Caesar  at  Rome)  was 
the  author  of  a  general  history  of  the  world.  Herodotus  had 
grouped  all  his  material  about  the  struggle  between  Greece  and 
Persia,  but  Diodorus  Siculus  makes  Rome  the  centre  of  the  whole 
story.  Already  men  were  coming  to  regard  Rome  as  the  preor- 
dained head  and  ruler  of  the  world. 

Plutarch  (b.  about  40  a.d.),  '^  the  prince  of  biographers,"  will 


520  GREEK  LITERATURE. 

always  live  in  literature  as  the  author  of  the  Parallel  Lives,  in 
which,  with  great  wealth  of  illustrative  anecdotes,  he  compares  or 
contrasts  (ireek  and  Roman  statesmen  and  soldiers.  The  motive 
that  led  Plutarch  to  write  the  book,  as  we  may  infer  from  the  par- 
tiality which  he  displays  for  his  Grecian  heroes,  was  a  desire  to 
let  the  world  know  that  Hellas  had  once  bred  men  the  peers  of 
the  best  men  that  Rome  had  ever  brought  forth. 

References.  —  Leaf,  Companion  to  the  Iliad ;  maintains  that  the  Iliad  is  a 
growth  from  a  single  poem,  added  to  from  time  to  time  by  many  hands.  Lang, 
Homer  and  the  Epic  (1893);  supports  the  theory  of  the  single  authorship  of 
the  Iliad  and  Odyssey.  Jebb,  Homet- :  An  Introduction  to  the  Iliad  and 
Odyssey  (3d  ed.,  1888),  and  Ihe  Growth  and  Infinence  of  Classical  Greek 
Poetry ;  also  his  Primer  of  Greek  Literature  and  Attic  Orators^  2  vols. 
Church,  Stories  from  the  Greek  Tragedians.  Rawlinson's  Herodotus,  vol.  i. 
pp.  1-114,  for  a  very  interesting  sketch  of  the  life  of  Herodotus  and  his  merits 
and  defects  as  a  historian.  Donaldson,  The  Theatre  of  the  Greeks  ;  a  treatise 
on  the  history  and  exhibition  of  the  Greek  Drama.  Felton,  Greece,  And  cm 
and  Modern,  vol.  i.  pp.  3-267,  on  the  Greek  Language  and  Poetry;  ib.  vol.  ii. 
pp.  1 1 1-246,  six  lectures  on  the  orators  of  Greece.  Macaulay's  essay,  entitled 
"On  the  Athenian  Orators."  Mahaffy,  History  of  Classical  Greek  Literature, 
2  vols.  Jevons,  History  of  Greek  literature.  A.  E.  Haigh,  The  Attic  Theatre. 
"A  description  of  the  stage  and  theatre  of  the  Athenians,  and  of  the  dramatic 
performances  at  Athens"  (1889).  We  give  this  important  book  a  place  here, 
though  it  contains  much  matter  of  theatrical  rather  than  literary  interest.  It 
is  designed  for  the  specialist. 


RELATION  OF  MYTHOLOGY   TO  PHILOSOPHY.         521 


CHAPTER    XXX. 

GREEK   PHILOSOPHY   AND   SCIENCE. 

Eelation  of  Mythology  to  Philosophy :  Use  of  Verse  in  Specu- 
lation. —  Philosophy  has  been  very  aptly  defined  as  mythology 
grown  old  and  wise.  Grecian  mythology  did  not  become  suffi- 
ciently wise  to  be  called  philosophy  until  the  sixth  century  b.c. 
About  that  time  the  Greeks  began  to  think  and  to  inquire  in  a 
philosophical  manner  respecting  the  phenomena  and  laws  of  the 
universe  of  mind  and  matter,  giving  the  most  attention  at  first, 
however,  to  the  physical  world.  Having  once  entered  upon  this 
path,  the  Greek  thinkers  reached,  almost  at  a  bound,  the  loftiest 
heights  of  philosophical  speculation. 

All  the  earlier  Greek  philosophers  were  poet-philosophers ;  that 
is,  they  conveyed  their  instruction  in  verse,  '*  dragging  the  hex- 
ameter," as  one  figures  it,  "along  the  pathway  of  their  argument 
upon  the  entities,  like  a  pompous  sacrificial  vestment."  Hera- 
clitus  (about  536-470  B.C.)  was  the  first  prominent  thinker  to 
e'mploy  prose  in  philosophical  discussions. 

The  Seven  Sages  :  the  Forerunners.  —  About  the  sixth  century 
B.C.  there  lived  and  taught  in  different  parts  of  Hellas  many  phi- 
losophers of  real  or  reputed  originahty  and  wisdom.  Among 
these  were  seven  men,  called  the  "  Seven  Sages,"  who  held  the 
place  of  pre-eminence.  As  in  the  case  of  the  Seven  Wonders  of 
the  World,  ancient  writers  were  not  always  agreed  as  to  what 
names  should  be  accorded  the  honor  of  enrolment  in  the  sacred 
number.  Thales,  Solon,  Periander,  Cleobulus,  Chilo,  Bias,  and 
Pittacus  are,  however,  usually  reckoned  as  the  Seven  Wise  Men.' 
1  All  accounts  agree  in  naming  Thales,  Solon,  Bias,  and  Pittacqs, 


522  GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 

To  them  belongs  the  distinction  of  having  first  aroused  the  Greek 
intellect  to  philosophical  thought.  The  wise  sayings  —  such  as 
"■  Know  thyself"  and  "  Nothing  in  excess  "  —  attributed  to  them, 
are  beyond  number. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  several  of  the  sages  were  tyrants  or  law- 
givers. This  is  not  a  mere  coincidence ;  it  is  explained  by  the 
fact  that  participation  in  active  political  life  stirs  and  quickens  the 
intellect. 

The  ethical  maxims  and  practical  proverbs  ascribed  to  the 
Sages,  while,  Hke  the  so-called  proverbs  of  Solomon,  they  contain 
a  vast  amount  of  practical  wisdom,  still  do  not  constitute  philoso- 
phy proper,  which  is  a  systematic  search  for  the  reason  and  causes 
of  things.  They  form  simply  the  introduction  or  prelude  to  Greek 
philosophy. 

The  Milesian  or  Ionic  Philosophers.  —  The  first  Greek  school 
of  philosophy  grew  up  in  the  cities  of  Ionia,  in  Asia  Minor,  where 
almost  all  forms  of  Hellenic  culture  seem  to  have  had  their 
beginnings.  The  founder  of  the  system  was  Thales  of  Miletus 
(about  624-548  B.C.),  who  was  followed  by  Anaximander,  Anaxi- 
menes,  and  Heraclitus. 

One  tenet  held  in  common  by  all  these  philosophers  was  that 
matter  and  mind  are  inseparable ;  or,  in  other  words,  that  all 
matter  is  animate.  They  never  thought  of  the  soul  as  something 
distinct  and  separable  from  matter,  as  we  do.  Even  the  shade  in 
Hades  was  conceived  as  having  a  body  in  every  respect  like  tha't 
the  soul  possessed  in  the  earthly  life,  only  it  was  composed  of  a 
subtler  substance.  This  conception  of  matter  as  being  alive  will 
help  us  to  understand  Greek  mythology,  which,  it  will  be  remem- 
bered, endowed  trees,  rivers,  springs,  clouds,  the  planets,  all 
physical  objects,  indeed,  with  intelHgence  and  will. 

This  sensate  matter  the  philosophers  held  to  be  eternal,  regard- 
ing creation  and  annihilation  as  both  alike  impossible. 

But  this  animated  matter  appeared  under  four  forms,  —  fire,  air, 
water,  and  earth,  the  well-known  "■  four  elements."  ^     Out  of  these 

1  At  first  the  elements  numbered  only  three,  —  air,  water,  and  earth,  —  fire  being 


PYTHAGORAS.  523 

four  elements  all  things  in  heaven  and  earth  were  made.  But  the 
philosophers  differed  as  to  which  of  the  four  elements  was  the 
original  principle,  that  is,  the  one  from  which  all  the  others  were 
derived ;  for  the  Greek  mind  could  not  rest  until  it  had  found 
unity.  Thales  believed  water  to  be  the  first  principle ;  Anaxi- 
menes  urged  that  it  was  air ;  while  Heraclitus  taught  that  it  was 
fire.i 

From  the  original  element  all  the  others  were  supposed  to  be 
derived  by  a  process  of  rarefaction  and  condensation.  (This 
notion  is  somewhat  like  the  modern  theory  of  astronomical  evolu- 
tion, which,  from  an  original  infinitely  expanded  gaseous  nebula, 
produces  by  successive  condensations  the  air,  the  water,  and  the 
solid  rock  of  the  various  planets.)  Rain  was  simply  condensed 
air.  The  wood  and  flesh  of  the  sacrifice,  when  consumed  upon 
the  altar,  were  merely  transformed  into  fire  (ether),  which,  seeking 
its  own,  naturally  mounted  to  its  native  sphere  —  the  empyrean. 
This  philosophical  notion  helps  us  to  understand  the  fundamental 
idea  of  the  ancient  sacrifices.  The  gods  were  pleased  with  the 
offerings,  because  these  being  converted  into  flame  or  ether,  could 
be  actually  partaken  of  as  food  by  the  celestials. 

Pythagoras.  —  Pythagoras  (about  580-500  b.c.)  was  born  on 
the  island  of  Samos,  whence  his  title  of  the  "  Samian  Sage."  The 
most  of  his  later  years  were  passed  at  Croton,  in  Southern  Italy, 
where  he  became  the  founder  of  a  celebrated  brotherhood  or  asso- 
ciation. This  was  a  sort  of  moral  reform  league,  characterized  by 
certain  ascetic  tendencies,  and  which  exerted  a  wide  and  impor- 
tant influence  upon  the  political  aff'airs  and  the  thought  of  the 
times. 

Somehow  the  personahty  of  Pythagoras  deeply  impressed  the 
imagination  of  a  later  age,  and  he  became  the  subject  of  a  myth 

regarded  as  simply  a  kind  of  refined  air.  These  elements  of  the  ancient  philosophers 
answer  to  the  seventy  or  more  elements  of  modern  chemistry. 

1  By  the  term  "fire"  the  ancient  philosophers  meant  about  what  we  understand 
by  the  term  "  ether  "  (which  comes  from  the  Greek  word  aiQf^iv,  meaning  "  to  burn  "). 
The  ether  or  fire  formed  a  sphere  above  the  air,  ensphering  it  just  as  it  in  turn 
enspheres  the  earth. 


524  GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 

or  legend.  The  legend  avers  that  he  visited  Egypt  and  other 
lands  of  the  Orient,  and  thus  became  versed  in  all  the  wisdom 
of  the  East.  It  represents  him  later  in  the  midst  of  his  disciples 
at  Croton,  eliciting  admiration  and  reverence  through  studied  pecu- 
liarities of  dress  and  manner.  It  tells  how  his  pupils,  in  the  first 
years  of  their  novitiate,  were  never  allowed  to  look  upon  their 
master ;  how  they  hstened  to  his  lectures  from  behind  a  curtain ; 
and  how  in  debate  they  used  no  other  argument  than  the  words 
Ipse  dixit,  "  he  himself  said  so." 

How  large  an  element  of  truth  this  legend  contains,  we  have 
no  means  of  determining.  It  is  not  improbable  that  Pythagoras 
visited  Egypt,  and  that  he  brought  from  thence  the  doctrine  of  the 
transmigration  of  the  soul  as  well  as  a  knowledge  of  certain  mathe- 
matical principles,  which  he  is  represented  as  teaching.  But  many 
of  the  doctrines  ascribed  to  him  were  doctrines  formulated  later 
by  his  disciples,  and  given  currency  under  his  name.  It  is  there- 
fore impossible  to  state  with  positiveness  what  Pythagoras  himself 
did  teach.  Pythagoreanism  must  be  looked  upon  as  the  product 
of  a  school  rather  than  of  a  single  mind. 

Among  the  speculations  of  the  Pythagoreans,  their  teachings 
respecting  metempsychosis  and  their  astronomical  opinions  have 
excited  the  most  interest  in  modern  times.  They  taught  the  doc- 
trine of  the  transmigration  of  the  soul,  an  idea  that  may  possibly, 
as  tradition  affirms,  have  been  brought  from  Egypt  by  Pythagoras 
himself.  In  respect  to  astronomy,  they  held  views  anticipating  by 
two  thousand  years  those  of  Copernicus  and  his  school.  They 
taught  that  the  earth  is  a  sphere,  and  that  it,  together  with  the 
other  planets,  revolves  about  a  central  globe  of  fire,  "  the 
hearth  or  altar  of  the  universe."  Some  of  the  school  are 
further  said  to  have  held  the  advanced  view  that  the  earth  rotates 
on  its  axis. 

From  the  Pythagorean  school  comes  the  pretty  conceit  of  the 
"  music  of  the  spheres."  They  imagined  that  the  heavenly  bodies 
were  arranged  in  space  at  such  intervals  from  each  other  as  to  form  a 
sort  of  musical  scale,  and  that  by  their  swift  motion  they  produced 


EMPEDOCLES   AND  DEMOCRITUS.  525 

harmonious  notes.  This  celestial  melody,  however,  was  too  refined 
for  mortal  ears.^ 

The  Pythagoreans,  as  we  have  intimated,  were  reformers  as  well 
as  philosophers.  Their  zeal  in  reforming  society  and  the  state 
involved  them  in  the  political  contentions  of  the  time,  and  this 
resulted  at  last  in  the  disruption  of  the  brotherhood.  But  the 
doctrines  of  the  school  lived  on  long  after  the  breaking-up  of  the 
Italian  association,  and  exercised  a  great  influence  upon  later  sys- 
tems of  thought.  In  Alexandria,  in  the  early  centuries  of  our  era, 
there  was  a  revival,  in  a  modified  form,  of  the  philosophy  of  the 
sect,  which  is  known  as  Neo-Pythagoreanism. 

Empedocles  and  Democritus.  —  In  the  teachings  of  Empedocles 
(about  490-430  B.C.)  and  Democritus  (about  460-360  b.c.)  we 
meet  with  many  speculations  respecting  the  constitution  of  matter 
and  the  origin  of  things  which  are  startlingly  similar  to  some  of 
the  doctrines  held  by  modern  scientists. 

Empedocles  has  been  called  "  the  father  of  the  evolution  idea." 
He  taught  that  the  elements  are  united  by  love  and  separated  by 
hate,  an  idea  somewhat  like  the  modern  conception  of  attraction 
and  repulsion.  Through  the  attraction  of  love,  all  organisms  are 
formed.  Plants  first  came  into  existence  and  afterwards  animals. 
Progress  has  taken  place  through  the  dying-out  of  the  less  perfect 
forms,  and  the  survival  of  the  species  best  fitted  to  live.  In  this 
conclusion,  which  contains  the  germ  of  the  theory  of  "natural 
selection,"  Empedocles  anticipated  modern  evolutionists  by  twenty 
centuries ;  but  then  he  failed  to  point  out  the  laws  through  the 
operations  of  which  the  transformation  takes  place,  and  so  his 
happy  guess  as  to  the  "origin  of  species  "  remained  only  a  guess. 

Democritus,  in  his  theory  of  atoms,  made  a  very  close  approach 
in  some  respects  to  the  views  of  modern  physicists  regarding  the 
constitution  of  matter.  He  conceived  all  things,  including  the 
soul,  to  be  composed   of  invisible,  uncreated  atoms,  all  alike  in 

1  The  doctrines  of  the  Pythagoreans  respecting  numbers  is  too  metaphysical  a 
conception  for  comment  here.  Those  wishing  to  investigate  this  matter  should 
consult  the  books  cited  at  the  end  of  the  chapter. 


526  GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 

quality  but  differing  in  form  and  combination.  Respecting  the 
formation  of  the  world  from  the  original  chaos  of  atoms,  he  held 
a  theory  that  had  points  of  resemblance  to  the  modern  nebular 
hypothesis. 

Anaxagoras.  —  Anaxagoras  (500-427?  b.c.)  was  the  first  Greek 
philosopher  who  made  Mind  {uou^),  instead  of  necessity  or 
chance,  the  arranging  and  harmonizing  force  of  the  universe.^ 
"  Reason  rules  the  world  "  was  his  first  maxim."  This  proposition, 
which  practically  made  mind  and  matter  two  distinct  things,  and 
mind  the  fashioner  of  matter,  marks  a  turning-point  in  Greek 
philosophy.  It  based  it  upon  the  same  fundamental  conception 
as  that  upon  which  the  Hebrew  philosophy  of  the  world  rested, 
and  prepared  the  way  for  the  union,  four  centuries  later,  of  these 
two  systems  of  thought,  at  Alexandria  (p.  535). 

Anaxagoras  was  the  teacher  in  philosophy  of  Pericles,  and  it  is 
certain  that  that  statesman  was  greatly  influenced  by  the  liberal 
views  of  the  philosopher ;  for  in  his  general  conceptions  of  the 
universe,  Anaxagoras  was  far  in  advance  of  his  age.  He  ventured 
to  believe  that  the  moon  was  somewhat  like  the  earth,  and  inhab- 
ited ;  and  taught  that  the  sun  was  not  a  god,  but  a  glowing  rock, 
as  large,  probably,  as  the  Peloponnesus. 

But,  for  his  temerity,  the  philosopher  suffered  the  fate  of  Galileo 
in  a  later  age  ;  he  was  charged  with  impiety  and  exiled.  Yet  this 
did  not  disturb  his  composure.  In  banishment  he  said,  "  It  is  not 
Iwho  have  lost  the  Athenians,  but  the  Athenians  who  have  lost 
me." 

The  Sophists.  —  The  philosophers  of  whom  we  have  thus  far 
spoken  were  in  general  men  who  made  the  physical  universe  the 

1  The  Empedoclean  forces  of  love  and  hate  acted  fortuitously.  In  producing 
animal  forms,  for  instance,  the  attractive  potency  of  love  was  as  apt  to  produce 
monstrosities,  such  as  the  chimaera,  the  centaurs,  and  the  like,  as  to  bring  into 
existence  perfect  forms. 

2  This  world-ordering  Mind  or  Reason  of  Anaxagoras  was  not  quite  the  same 
as  the  Supreme  Ruler  or  Divine  Wisdom  of  the  later  philosophers.  There  was 
lacking  in  the  conception,  in  some  degree,  the  idea  of  intelligent  design  or  moral 
purpose. 


THE   SOPHISTS.       •  527 

subject  of  their  speculations.  Their  systems  of  thought  possessed 
Httle  or  no  practical  value.  They  did  not  supply  motives  for  right 
living,  having  no  word  for  the  citizen  in  regard  to  his  duties 
godvvard  or  manward.  About  the  middle  of  the  fifth  century, 
however,  there  appeared  in  Greece  a  new  class  of  philosophers, 
or  rather  teachers,  called  Sophists.  They  abandoned  in  despair  the 
attempt  of  their  predecessors  to  solve  the  problems  of  the  physical 
world,  and  devoted  themselves  particularly  to  the  inculcation  of 
civic  duties.  As  the  earher  philosophers  had  made  truth  the 
object  of  pursuit,  so  the  Sophists  made  virtue  the  goal  of  effort. 
The  beginning  of  this  movement  which  thus  turned  men's  thought 
from  the  pursuit  of  physical  science  to  that  of  civic  excellence, 
may  be  traced  to  Anaxagoras  (p.  526),  who,  in  declaring  mind  to 
be  the  thing  of  chief  import  and  the  disposing  force  in  the  uni- 
verse, introduced  into  Greek  philosophy  a  new  and  transforming 
element.  From  the  time  of  the  appearance  of  the  Sophists  for- 
ward, we  find  man  as  an  individual  and  a  citizen,  rather  than  the 
physical  world,  the  chief  subject  of  Greek  study  and  reflection. 
Not  until  the  rise  of  modern  science  in  the  sixteenth  century 
were  physical  phenomena  again  to  absorb  so  much  attention  as 
they  did  in  the  earlier  schools  of  Hellas. 

The  most  noted  of  the  Sophists  were  Protagoras,  Gorgias,  and 
Prodicus.  As  a  class,  the  Sophists  busied  themselves  in  giving 
instruction  in  rhetoric  and  the  art  of  disputation. 

They  travelled  about  from  city  to  city,  and,  contrary  to  the 
usual  custom  of  the  Greek  philosophers,  took  fees  from  their 
pupils.  For  about  one  hundred  years  after  the  middle  of  the  fifth 
century,  these  men  were  the  most  popular  and  prominent  edu- 
cators in  Greece.  Notwithstanding  their  professions,  they  were 
in  general  teachers  of  superficial  knowledge,  who  cared  more  for 
the  dress  in  which  the  thought  was  arrayed  than  for  the  thought 
itself,  more  for  victory  than  for  truth ;  and  some  of  them  incul- 
cated a  selfish  moraHty,  placing  expediency  before  right.  The 
better  philosophers  of  the  time  despised  them,  and  applied  to 
them  many    harsh   epithets,   taunting   them   with   selling   wisdom 


.^2S  GREEK  PHIIOSOPHY  AArD   SCIENCE. 

and  accusing  them  of  boasting  that  they  could  ''  make  the  worse 
appear  the  better  reason." 

But  this  latter  accusation  was  unjust.  What  the  Sophists,  among 
other  things  conducive  to  success  in  civic  life,  really  taught  the 
people  was  the  art  of  conducting  their  own  cases  before  the  great 
citizen-juries,  where  every  man  was  forced  to  be  his  own  advocate. 
That  their  pupils  often  employed  the  art  in  making  the  unjust 
appear  the  just  cause,  there  is  no  doubt ;  but  the  Sophists  should 
hardly  be  held  responsible  for  this  abuse  of  the  art  they  taught. 
The  lawyer's  profession  of  the  present  day  is  often  perverted,  but 
not  for  that  reason  should  the  whole  art  of  pleading  and  of  foren- 
sic oratory  be  left  untaught. 

Socrates.  —  Volumes  would  not  contain  what  would  be  both 
instructive  and  interesting  respecting  the  teachings  and  specu- 
lations of  the  three  great  philosophers  —  Socrates,  Plato,  and 
Aristotle.  We  can,  however,  accord  to  each  only  a  few  words. 
Of  these  three  eminent  thinkers,  Socrates  (469-399  b.c),  though 
surpassed  in  grasp  and  power  of  intellect  by  both  Plato  and  Aris- 
totle, has  the  firmest  hold  upon  the  affections  of  the  world. 

Nature,  while  generous  to  the  philosopher  in  the  gifts  of  soul, 
was  unkind  to  him  in  the  matter  of  his  person.  His  face  was  ugly 
as  a  satyr's,  so  that  he  invited  the  shafts  of  the  comic  poets  of  his 
time.  His  figure  is  said  to  have  been  the  most  ungainly,  and 
therefore  the  most  familiar,  of  any  upon  the  streets  of  Athens. 
He  loved  to  gather  a  little  circle  about  him  in  the  Agora  or  in  the 
streets,  and  then  to  draw  out  his  listeners  by  a  series  of  ingenious 
questions.  His  method  was  so  peculiar  to  himself  that  it  has 
received  the  designation  of  the  "  Socratic  dialogue."  He  has 
very  happily  been  called  an  educator,  as  opposed  to  an  in- 
structor. In  the  young  men  of  his  time  Socrates  found  many 
devoted  pupils.  The  youthful  Alcibiades  declared  that  "  he  was 
forced  to  stop  his  ears  and  flee  away,  that  he  might  not  sit  down 
by  the  side  of  Socrates  and  grow  old  in  listening."  ^ 

1  Socrates  was  unfortunate  in  his  domestic  relations.  Xanthippe,  his  wife, 
seems  to  have  been  of  a  practical  turn  of  mind,  and  unable  to  sympathize  with  the 


PLA  TO. 


529 


This  great  philosopher  beUeved  that  the  proper  study  of  man- 
kind is  man,  his  favorite  maxim  being  "Know  thyself";  hence 
he  is  said  to  have  brought  philosophy  from  the  heavens  and 
introduced  it  to  the  homes  of  men. 

Socrates  held  the  Sophists  in  aversion,  and  in  opposition  to 
their  selfish  expediency  taught  the  purest  system  of  morals  that 
the  world  had  yet  known,  and  which  has  been  surpassed  only 
by  the  precepts  of  the  Great 
Teacher.  He  thought  himself 
to  be  restrained  from  entering 
upon  what  was  inexpedient  or 
wrong,  by  a  tutelary  spirit  (de- 
mon). He  beheved  in  the  im- 
mortality of  the  soul  and  in  a 
Supreme  Ruler  of  the  universe, 
but  sometimes  spoke  slightingly 
of  the  temples  and  the  popular 
deities.  This  led  to  his  prose- 
cution on  the  double  charge  of 
blasphemy  and  of  corrupting 
the  Athenian  youth.  Of  his 
demeanor  at  his  trial,  of  his 
condemnation,  and  of  his  last 
hours  with  his  devoted  disciples,  we  have  already  spoken  (p.  400) . 

Plato.  —  Plato  (427-347  B.C.),  "the  broad-browed,"  was  a  phi- 
losopher of  noble  birth,  before  whom  in  youth  opened  a  brilliant 
career  in  the  world  of  Greek  affairs ;  but,  coming  under  the  influ- 
ence of  Socrates,  he  resolved  to  give  up  all  his  prospects  in  politics 
and  devote  himself  to  philosophy.  Upon  the  condemnation  and 
death  of  his  master  he  went  into  voluntary  exile.  In  foreign  lands 
he  gathered  knowledge  and  met  with  varied  experiences.^     He 


Fig.  71.     SOCRATES. 


abstracted  ways  of  her  husband,  whose  life  at  home  she  at  times  made  very 
uncomfortable.  Her  name  has  been  handed  down  as  "  the  synonym  of  the  typical 
scold." 

1  See  above,  pp.  423  and  425. 


530 


GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 


finally  returned  to  Athens  and  established  a  school  of  philosophy 
in  the  Academy.  Here,  amid  the  disciples  that  thronged  to  his 
lectures,  he  passed  the  greater  part  of  his  long  life  —  he  died  348 
B.C.,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one  years  —  laboring  incessantly  upon  the 
great  works  that  bear  his  name. 

Plato  imitated  in  his  writings  Socrates'  method  in  conversation. 
The  discourse  is  carried  on  by  questions  and  answers,  hence  the 

term  Dialogues  that  attaches  to  his 
works.  He  attributes  to  his  master, 
Socrates,  much  of  the  philosophy  that 
he  teaches :  yet  his  writings  are  all 
deeply  tinged  with  his  own  genius  and 
thought.  In  the  Republic  Plato  por- 
trays his  conception  of  an  ideal  state 
He  was  opposed  to  the  extreme  democ- 
racy of  the  Athenians,  and  his  system, 
in  some  of  its  main  features^  was  sin- 
gularly hke  the  feudal  system  of  Med- 
iaeval Europe.  Especially  is  this  true 
P  Arc  ^^  ^^  ^^^^  military  aristocracy. 

The  Phcedo  is  a  record  of  the  last 
conversation  of  Socrates  with  his  disciples  —  an  immortal  argu- 
ment for  the  immortality  of  the  soul. 

Plato  believed  not  only  in  a  future  life  (post-existence),  but  also 
in  pre-existence ;  teaching  that  the  ideas  of  reason,  or  our  intui- 
tions, are  reminiscences  of  a  past  experience.^     Plato's  doctrines 


1  In  the  following  lines  from  Wordsworth  we  catch  a  glimpse  of  Plato's  doctrine 
of  pre-existence :  — 

"  Our  birth  Is  but  a  sleep  and  a  forgetting; 
The  soul  that  rises  with  us,  our  life's  star. 
Hath  had  elsewhere  Its  setting. 

And  Cometh  from  afar: 
Not  in  entire  forgetfulness, 
Nor  yet  in  utter  nakedness, 
But  trailing  clouds  of  glory,  do  we  come 
From  God,  who  is  our  home." —  Ode  on  Immortality. 

And  again  :  "  And  but  for  our  surface  and  distracted  lives—  lived  here  for  the  most 


ARISTOTLE. 


531 


have  exerted  a  profound  influence  upon  all  schools  of  thought  and 
philosophies  since  his  day.  In  some  of  his  precepts  he  made  a 
close  approach  to  the  teachings 
of  Christianity.  "  We  ought  to 
become  hke  God,"  he  said,  *'  as 
far  as  this  is  possible  ;  and  to 
become  like  Him  is  to  become 
holy  and  just  and  wise." 

Aristotle.  —  As  Socrates  was 
surpassed  by  his  pupil  Plato,  so  in 
turn  was  Plato  excelled  by  his 
disciple  Aristotle  (384-322  B.C.), 
'^  the  master  of  those  who  know." 
In  him  the  philosophical  genius 
of  the  Hellenic  intellect  reached 
its  culmination.  It  may  be 
doubted  whether  all  the  ages 
since  his  time  have  produced  so 
profound  and  powerful  an  intel- 
lect as  his.  He  was  born  in  the 
Macedonian  city  of  Stagira,  and 
hence  is  frequently  called  the 
"Stagirite."  As  in  the  case  of 
Socrates,  his  personal  appearance 
gave  no  promise  of  the  philoso- 
pher. He  had  a  small  and  con- 
temptible   body,    the    defects  of 

part  in  the  senses  —  we  should  have  never  lost  the  consciousness  of  our  descent 
into  immortality,  nor  have  questioned  our  resurrection  and  longevity.  But  as  in 
descending  all  drink  of  oblivion  —  some  more,  some  less  —  it  happens  that  while 
all  are  conscious  of  life,  by  defect  of  memory  our  recollections  are  various  con- 
cerning it;  those  discerning  most  vividly  who  have  drunk  least  of  oblivion,  they 
more  easily  recalling  the  memory  of  their  past  existence.  Ancient  of  days,  we 
hardly  are  persuaded  to  believe  that  our  souls  are  no  older  than  our  bodies,  and  to 
date  our  nativity  from  our  family  registers,  as  if  time  and  space  could  chronicle 
the  periods  of  the  immortal  mind  by  its  advent  into  the  flesh  and  decease  out  of 
it."  —  Alcott's  Tablets,  p.  303. 


Fig.  73.     ARISTOTLE. 


532  GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AXD   SCIENCE. 

which  were  made  more  noticeable  by  his  over-scrupulous  care 
of  his  dress  and  by  the  finery  he  wore.  His  teacher  Plato,  how- 
ever, recognized  the  genius  of  his  pupil,  and  called  him  the 
"  Mind  of  the  school."  He  also  called  him  ''the  Reader,"  be- 
cause he  devoured  so  eagerly  the  works  of  the  masters. 

After  studying  for  twenty  years  in  the  school  of  Plato,  Aristotle 
became  the  preceptor  of  Alexander  the  Great  (p.  440).  When 
Philip  invited  him  to  become  the  tutor  of  his  son,  he  gracefully 
complimented  the  philosopher  by  saying  in  his  letter  that  he  was 
grateful  to  the  gods  that  the  prince  was  born  in  the  same  age  with 
him.  The  royal  pupil  loved  his  great  teacher  with  an  affectionate 
devotion.  He  said,  "  I  owe  great  love  to  my  father  and  to  my 
teacher  Aristotle ;  to  one  for  living,  and  to  the  other  for  living 
well."  Alexander  became  the  liberal  patron  of  his  tutor,  and, 
besides  giving  him  large  sums  of  money,  aided  him  in  his  scientific 
studies  by  sending  him  large  collections  of  plants  and  animals, 
gathered  on  his  distant  expeditions. 

At  Athens  the  great  philosopher  delivered  his  lectures  while 
walking  about  beneath  the  trees  and  porticos  of  the  Lyceum ; 
hence  the  term  "  peripatetic  "  (from  the  Greek  peripatein,  "  to 
walk  about  ")  applied  to  his  philosophy.  He  died  322  B.C.,  the 
same  year  that  marks  the  death  of  Demosthenes. 

Among  the  productions  of  his  fertile  intellect  are  works  on 
rhetoric,  logic,  poetry,  morals  and  politics,  physics  and  meta- 
physics. For  centuries  his  works  were  studied  and  copied  and 
commented  upon  by  both  European  and  Asiatic  scholars,  in  the 
schools  of  Athens  and  Rome,  of  Alexandria  and  Constantinople. 
Until  the  time  of  Bacon  in  England,  for  nearly  two  thousand 
years,  Aristotle  ruled  over  the  realm  of  mind  with  a  despotic 
sway.  All  teachers  and  philosophers  acknowledged  him  as  their 
guide  and  master. 

Zeno  and  the  Stoics.  —  We  are  now  approaching  the  period 
when  the  political  life  of  Hellas  was  failing,  and  was  being  fast 
overshadowed  by  the  greatness  of  Rome.  But  the  intellectual  life 
of  the  Greek  race  was  by  no  means  eclipsed  by  the  calamity  that 


ZENO  AND    THE   STOICS.  '  533 

ended  its  political  existence.  For  centuries  after  that  event  the 
poets,  scholars,  and  philosophers  of  this  intellectual  people  led  a 
brilliant  career  in  the  schools  and  universities  of  the  Roman 
world. 

From  among  all  the  philosophers  of  this  long  period,  we  can 
select  for  brief  mention  only  a  few.  And  first  we  shall  speak  of 
Zeno  and  Epicurus,  who  are  noted  as  founders  of  schools  of  phi- 
losophy that  exerted  a  vast  influence  upon  both  the  thought  and 
the  conduct  of  many  centuries. 

Zeno,  founder  of  the  celebrated  school  of  the  Stoics,  lived  in 
the  third  century  before  our  era  (about  340-265).  He  taught 
at  Athens  in  a  public  porch  (in  Greek  stoa),  from  which  cir- 
cumstance comes  the  name  applied  to  his  disciples. 

The  Stoical  philosophy  was  the  outgrowth,  in  part  at  least,  of 
that  of  the  Cynics,  a  sect  of  most  rigid  and  austere  morals. 
The  typical  representative  of  this  sect  is  found  in  Diogenes,  who 
lived,  so  the  story  goes,  in  a  tub,  and  went  about  Athens  by  day- 
light with  a  lantern,  in  search,  as  he  said,  of  a  man.  The  Cynics 
were  simply  a  race  of  pagan  hermits  :  Diogenes  was  the  Simon 
Stylites  ^  of  the  sect. 

Zeno  adopted  all  that  was  good  in  the  code  of  the  Cynics,  and, 
adding  to  this  everything  that  he  found  of  value  in  the  systems  of 
other  philosophers,  formed  therefrom  his  new  philosophy.  It 
became  a  favorite  system  of  thought  with  certain  classes  of  the 
Romans,  and  under  its  teachings  and  doctrines  were  nourished 
some  of  the  purest  and  loftiest  characters  produced  by  the  pagan 
world.  It  numbered  among  its  representatives,  in  later  times,  the 
illustrious  Roman  emperor  Marcus  Aurelius,  and  the  scarcely  less 
renowned  and  equally  virtuous  slave  Epictetus.  In  many  of  its 
teachings  it  anticipated  Christian  doctrines,  and  was,  in  the  philo- 
sophical world,  a  very  important  preparation  for  Christianity. 

The  Stoics  inculcated  virtue  for  the  sake  of  itself.  They 
believed  —  and  it  would  be  very  difficult  to  frame  a  better  creed  — 
that  "  man's  chief  business  here  is  to  do  his  duty."     Bodily  pain, 

1  A  noted  Christian  ascetic. 


534 


GR^EK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 


they  taught,  was  a  matter  of  no  moment ;  and  they  schooled  them- 
selves to  bear  with  composure  any  lot  that  destiny  might  appoint. 
Any  sign  of  emotion  on  account  of  calamity  was  considered  un- 
manly and  unphilosophical.  Thus,  a  certain  Stoic,  when  told  of 
the  sudden  death  of  his  son,  is  said  merely  to  have  remarked, 
"Well,  I  never  imagined  that  I  had  given  life  to  an  immortal." 
Epicurus  and  the  Epicureans.  —  Epicurus  (341-270  b.c.)  who 
was  a  contemporary  of  Zeno,  taught,  in  opposition  to  the  Stoics, 
that  pleasuj-e  is  the  highest  good.  He 
recommended  virtue,  indeed,  but  only  as 
a  means  for  the  attainment  of  pleasure ; 
whereas  the  Stoics  made  virtue  an  end 
in  itself.  In  other  words,  Epicurus  said, 
"  Be  virtuous,  because  virtue  will  bring 
you  the  greatest  amount  of  happiness  "  ; 
Zeno  said,  "  Be  virtuous,  because  you 
ought  to  be." 

Epicurus  had  many  followers  in  Greece, 
and  his  doctrines  were  eagerly  embraced 
by  many  among  the  Romans  during  the 
corrupt  and  licentious  period  of  the 
Roman  empire.  Many  of  these  disciples 
carried  the  doctrines  of  their  master  to  an  excess  that  he  him- 
self would  have  been  the  first  to  condemn.  (There  is  often  more 
of  good  or  evil  in  a  philosophy  than  its  founder  ever  dreams  of.) 
Allowing  full  indulgence  to  every  appetite  and  passion,  their 
whole  philosophy  was  expressed  in  the  proverb,  "  Let  us  eat  and 
drink,  for  to-morrow  we  die."  No  pure  or  exalted  life  could  be 
nourished  in  the  unwholesome  atmosphere  of  such  a  philosophy. 
Epicureanism  never  produced  a  single  great  character. 

The  Sceptics  :  Pyrrho.  —  About  the  beginning  of  the  third 
century  b.c.  scepticism  became  wide-spread  in  Greece.  It  seemed 
as  though  men  were  losing  faith  in  everything.  Many  circum- 
stances had  worked  together  to  bring  about  this  state  of  universal 
unbelief.     A  wider  knowledge  of  the  world  had  caused  many  to 


Fig.  74.     EPICURUS. 


THE  NRO-PLATOmSTS.  535 

lose  their  faith  in  the  myths  and  legends  of  the  old  mythologies. 
The  existence  of  so  many  systems  of  philosophy  caused  men  to 
doubt  the  truth  of  any  of  them.  The  conquests  of  Alexander,  by 
bringing  the  Greek  mind  in  contact  with  the  strange  Asiatic  sys- 
tems of  belief,  tended  powerfully  to  deepen  and  confirm  this 
feeling  of  bewilderment  and  uncertainty.  Many  thoughtful  minds 
were  hopelessly  asking,  "What  is  truth?" 

Pyrrho  (about  365-275  B.C.)  was  the  "doubting  Thomas  "  of  the 
Greeks.  He  doubted  everything,  and  declared  that  the  great 
problems  of  the  universe  could  not  be  solved.  It  was  the  duty  of 
man,  and  the  part  of  wisdom,  to  entertain  no  positive  judgment 
on  any  matter,  and  thus  to  ensure  serenity  and  peace  of  mind. 

The  disciples  of  Pyrrho  went  to  absurd  lengths  in  their  scepti- 
cism, some  of  them  even  saying  that  they  asserted  nothing,  not  even 
that  they  asserted  nothing.     They  doubted  whether  they  doubted. 

The  Neo-Platonists.  —  Neo-Platonism  was  a  blending  of  Greek 
philosophy  and  Oriental  mysticism.  It  has  been  well  called  the 
"  despair  of  reason,"  because  it  abandoned  all  hope  of  man's  ever 
being  able  to  attain  the  highest  knowledge  through  the  intellect, 
and  held  that  the  human  soul,  when  in  an  ecstatic  state  or 
prophet-like  trance,  receives,  through  a  higher  faculty  than  rea- 
son, in  a  sort  of  vision,  revelations  of  divine  and  eternal  truth.  It 
was  chiefly  a  theological  philosophy;  that  is,  it  dealt  with  the 
nature  of  God  and  his  relations  to  man.  Its  representatives  were 
at  once  Greek  thinkers  and  Hebrew  seers.  The  centre  of  this 
last  movement  in  Greek  philosophical  thought  was  Alexandria  in 
Egypt,  the  meeting-place,  in  the  closing  centuries  of  the  ancient 
world,  of  the  East  and  the  West. 

Philo  the  Jew  (b.  about  39  B.C.),  who  labored  to  harmonize 
Hebrew  doctrines  with  the  teachings  of  Plato,  was  the  forerunner 
of  the  Neo-Platonists.  But  the  greatest  of  the  school  was  Plotinus 
(a.d.  204-269),  who  spent  the  last  years  of  his  Hfe  at  Rome, 
where  he  was  a  great  favorite.  Four  times  in  six  years,  according 
to  one  of  his  disciples,  was  he  freed  from  the  body,  and  being 
absorbed  in  the  Infinite,  saw  God,  in  ecstatic  vision. 


536  GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 

Conflict  between  Neo-Platonism  and  Christianity.  —  While 
the  Neo-Platonists  were  laboring  to  restore,  in  modified  form,  the 
ancient  Greek  philosophy  and  worship,  the  teachers  of  Christianity 
were  fast  winning  the  world  over  to  a  new  faith.  The  two  systems 
came  into  deadly  antagonism.  For  a  time  the  issue  of  the  con- 
tention between  the  Hellenic  philosophers  and  the  Christian 
Fathers  may  have  seemed  doubtful.  But  by  the  close  of  the 
third  century  a.d.  it  was  plain  that  the  majority  of  the  people  of 
the  Roman  empire,  which  now  virtually  embraced  the  world, 
were  already,  or  at  least  soon  would  be,  disciples  of  the  Christian 
teachers.  It  was  doubtless  his  persuasion  of  this  fact  that  led  the 
Roman  emperor  Constantine  the  Great  (a.d.  306-337)  to  throw 
his  influence  on  the  side  of  the  Christian  Fathers,  and  proclaim 
Christianity  as  the  favored  religion  of  the  empire. 

Under  Julian  the  Apostate  (Roman  emperor  a.d.  361-363), 
who  was  an  ardent  Neo-Platonist,  the  Hellenic  philosophy  was 
restored,  and  every  effort  made  to  discredit  and  destroy  the 
Christian  faith.  With  his  death,  however,  passed  away  the  last 
good  hope  of  the  restoration  of  the  renovated  philosophy  of 
ancient  Greece.  The  gifted  and  beautiful  Hypatia,  almost  the 
last  representative  of  the  old  system  of  speculation  and  belief,  was 
torn  to  pieces  in  the  streets  of  Alexandria  by  a  mob  of  fanatic 
Christian  monks  (a.d.  415).  Finally  the  Roman  emperor  Justin- 
ian forbade  the  pagan  philosophers  to  teach  their  doctrines  (a.d 
529).^  This  imperial  edict  closed  forever  the  Greek  schools,  in 
which  for  more  than  a  thousand  years  the  world  had  received 
instruction  upon  the  loftiest  themes  that  can  engage  the  human 
mind.  The  Greek  philosophers,  as  living,  personal  teachers,  had 
finished  their  work  ;  but  their  systems  of  thought  will  never  cease 
to  attract  and  influence  the  best  minds  of  the  race.  • 

Science  among  the  Greeks. 

In  ancient  times  no  single  people  or  race  excelled  in  all  depart- 
ments of  knowledge  or  human  endeavor.     Having,  then,  seen  the 

1  See  MedicBval  and  Modern  History,  pp.  68,  69. 


MATHEMATICS:  EUCLID   AND   ARCHIMEDES.  537 

wonderful  genius  of  the  Greek  race  for  art,  literature,  and  philoso- 
phy, we  are  prepared  to  learn  that  they  never  evinced  great  apti- 
tude for  the  more  practical  sciences.  In  art  and  Hterature  the 
(xreeks  are  still  our  teachers ;  in  science  we  are  immeasurably 
their  superiors.  Still,  while  this  is  true,  the  contributions  to  the 
physical  sciences  of  the  Greek  observers  have  laid  us  under  no 
small  obligation  to  them.  Especially  did  the  later  Greeks  do 
much  good  and  lasting  work  in  the  mathematical  sciences. 

Some  of  those  whom  we  have  classed  as  philosophers,  Thales 
and  Anaxagoras  for  instance,  were  careful  students  of  nature,  and 
might  be  called  scientists.  The  great  philosopher  Aristotle  wrote 
some  valuable  works  on  anatomy  and  natural  history,  his  observa- 
tions being  held  in  the  highest  esteem  by  naturaHsts  of  the  present 
day  for  their  accuracy.  From  his  time  onward  the  sciences  were 
pursued  with  much  zeal  and  success. 

Mathematics  :  Euclid  and  Archimedes.  —  Alexandria,  in  Egypt, 
became  the  seat  of  the  most  celebrated  school  of  mathematics  of 
antiquity.  Here,  under  Ptolemy  Lagus,  flourished  Euclid,  the 
great  geometer,  whose  work  forms  the  basis  of  the  science  of 
geometry  as  taught  in  our  schools  at  the  present  time.  Ptolemy 
himself  was  his  pupil.  The  royal  student,  however,  seems  to  have 
disliked  the  severe  application  required  to  master  the  problems  of 
Euclid,  and  asked  his  teacher  if  there  was  not  some  easier  way. 
Euclid  repHed,  "  There  is  no  royal  road  to  geometry." 

In  the  third  century  B.C.,  Syracuse,  in  Sicily,  was  the  home  of 
Archimedes,  the  greatest  mathematician  that  the  Grecian  world 
produced.  He  had  a  marvellous  genius  for  figures,  and  investi- 
gated the  abstrusest  problems  in  geometry,  mechanics,  and  the 
allied  sciences.  The  range  and  productiveness  of  his  genius  are 
shown  by  the  following  titles  to  some  of  his  works :  On  Bodies 
Floating  in  Fluids ;  On  Centres  of  Gravity ;  On  the  Sphere  and 
the  Cylinder. 

His  acquaintance  with  the  first  subject  is  illustrated  by  the 
familiar  story  that  is  told  of  the  manner  in  which  he  detected  the 
impurity  of  the  gold  in  the  crown  of  Hiero^  king  of  Syracuse, 


538  GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 

The  king,  suspecting  that  the  gold  had  been  alloyed,  submitted 
the  article  to  Archimedes,  who  detected  the  fraud  by  means  of  the 
principle  of  specific  gravities,  which  was  suggested  to  him  while 
bathing.  Leaping  from  the  bath,  he  ran  through  the  corridors, 
exclaiming,  ''  Eureka  I  Eureka  !  "  —  "I  have  found  it !  I  have 
found  it ! " 

His  knowledge  of  the  second  subject  and  of  the  laws  of  the 
lever  is  indicated  by  the  oft-quoted  boast  that  he  made  to  Hiero : 
"Give  me  a  place  to  stand,  and  I  will  move  the  world."  His 
elucidation  of  the  properties  of  the  sphere  and  cyHnder  were, 
even  in  his  own  estimation,  so  important  that  he  requested  that  a 
figure  of  these  should  be  placed,  as  the  fittest  memorial  of  his  life, 
upon  his  tomb.  More  than  one  hundred  years  afterwards  Cicero 
discovered  and  identified  the  monument  by  means  of  these  emblems. 

During  the  siege  of  Syracuse  by  the  Romans,  Archimedes  ren- 
dered his  native  city  valuable  service  by  driving  off  or  destroying 
the  enemy's  vessels  by  means  of  ingenious  and  powerful  engines. 
The  story  of  his  setting  fire  to  the  Roman  ships  by  means  of 
mirrors  reflecting  the  sun's  rays,  is,  after  much  discussion,  allowed 
to  be  not  only  possible,  but  probable.  Archimedes  perished  in 
the  sack  of  the  city  (212  B.C.),  but  in  what  way  he  met  his  death 
is  not  known  with  certainty. 

Astronomy  and  Geography.  —  Among  ancient  Greek  astrono- 
mers and  geographers,  the  names  of  Aristarchus,  Eratosthenes, 
Hipparchus,  Strabo,  Pausanias,  and  Claudius  Ptolemy  are  distin- 
guished. 

Aristarchus  of  Samos,  who  lived  in  the  third  century  B.C.,  held 
that  the  earth  revolves  about  the  sun  as  a  fixed  centre,  and  rotates 
on  its  own  axis.  He  was  the  Greek  Copernicus.  But  his  theory 
was  rejected  by  his  contemporaries  and  successors. 

Eratosthenes  (b.  about  276  B.C.)  might  be  called  an  astronomi- 
cal geographer.  His  greatest  achievement  was  the  fairly  accurate 
determination  of  the  circumference  of  the  earth  by  means  of  the 
different  lengths  of  the  shadow  cast  by  the  midday  sun  in  Upper 
and  in  Lower  Egypt  at  the  time  of  the  summer  solstice. 


MEDICINE   AND   ANATOMY.  539 

Hipparchus,  who  flourished  about  the  middle  of  the  second 
century  B.C.,  was,  through  his  careful  observations,  the  real  founder 
of  scientific  astronomy.  He  calculated  eclipses,  observed  the 
precession  of  the  equinoxes,  catalogued  the  stars,  and  wrote 
several  astronomical  works  of  a  really  scientific  character. 

Strabo  was  born  about  half  a  century  before  our  era.  He 
travelled  over  a  large  part  of  the  world,  and  describes,  as  an  eye- 
witness, the  scenery,  the  productions,  and  the  peoples  of  all  the 
countries  known  to  the  ancients. 

About  two  centuries  after  Strabo's  time,  Pausanias  wrote  his 
Tour  of  Greece,  a  sort  of  guide-book,  which  is  crowded  with 
invaluable  little  items  of  interest  respecting  all  the  places  best 
worth  visiting  in  Greece. 

Claudius  Ptolemy,  the  most  noted  of  ancient  astronomers,  lived 
in  Egypt  about  the  middle  of  the  second  century  after  Christ. 
His  great  reputation  is  due  not  so  much  to  his  superior  genius  as 
to  the  fortunate  circumstance  that  a  vast  work  ^  compiled  by  him, 
preserved  and  transmitted  to  later  times  almost  all  the  knowledge 
of  the  ancient  world  on  astronomical  and  geographical  subjects. 
In  this  way  it  has  happened  that  his  name  has  become  attached 
to  various  doctrines  and  views  respecting  the  universe,  though 
these  probably  were  not  originated  by  him.  The  phrase  "  Ptolemaic 
System,"  however,  links  his  name  inseparably,  whether  the  honor 
be  fairly  his  or  not,  with  that  conception  of  the  solar  system  set 
forth  in  his  works,  which  continued  to  be  the  received  theory 
from  his  time  until  Copernicus  —  fourteen  centuries  later. 

Ptolemy  combated  the  theory  of  Aristarchus  in  regard  to  the 
rotation  and  revolution  of  the  earth ;  yet  he  beHeved  the  earth  to 
be  a  globe,  and  supported  this  view  by  exactly  the  same  argu- 
ments that  we  to-day  use  to  prove  the  doctrine. 

Medicine  and  Anatomy.  —  Hippocrates  (b.  about  460  b.c), 
the  founder  of  a  school  of  medicine  at  Cos,  did  so  much  to  eman- 
cipate the  art  of  healing  from  superstition  and  ignorance,  and  to 

1  Known  to  Mediaeval  Europe  by  its  Arabian  title  Almagest,  meaning  "  the 
greatest," 


540  GREEK  PHILOSOPHY  AND   SCIENCE. 

make  it  a  scientific  study,  that  he  is  called  the  "  Father  of  Medi- 
cine." ^  His  central  doctrine  was  that  there  are  laws  of  disease 
as  well  as  laws  of  healthy  life.  The  works  ascribed  to  him  form 
the  basis  of  modern  medical  science. 

The  most  noted  Greek  physician  after  Hippocrates  was  Galenus 
Claudius,  or  simply  Galen  (about  a.d.  130-193).  He  wrote  a 
multitude  of  books,  which  gathered  up  all  the  medical  and  ana- 
tomical knowledge  of  his  time,  and  which  were  greatly  prized  and 
carefully  studied  by  the  medical  students  of  the  Middle  Ages. 

The  advance  of  the  science  of  anatomy  among  the  ancient 
Greeks  was  hindered  by  their  feelings  respecting  the  body,  which 
caused  them  to  look  with  horror  upon  its  dehberate  mutilation. 
Surprising  as  the  statement  may  appear,  it  is  nevertheless  true  that 
Aristotle,  "  the  greatest  of  all  thinkers  in  antiquity,  the  son  of  a 
physician,  especially  educated  in  physical  science,  and  well  ac- 
quainted for  the  time  with  the  dissection  of  animals,  regarded  the 
brain  as  a  lump  of  cold  substance,  quite  unfit  to  be  the  seat  and 
organ  of  the  sensus  communis'}  This  important  office  he  ascribed 
rather  to  the  heart.  The  brain  he  considered  to  be  chiefly  useful 
as  the  source  of  fluids  for  lubricating  the  eyes,  etc."  ^  At  Alex- 
andria, however,  in  the  later  period,  under  the  influence  doubtless 
of  Egyptian  practices  in  embalming,  the  Greek  physicians  greatly 
promoted  the  knowledge  of  anatomy  not  only  by  the  dissection  of 
dead  bodies,  but  even  by  the  vivisection  of  criminals  condemned 
to  death."* 

References.  — Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  iv.  pp.  65- 
94;     (tw^elve  volume   ed.),    vol.    iv.   pp.    378-41 1;    Ionic    Philosophers   and 

1  The  patron  god  of  medicine  was  .^sculapius. 

2  The  thinking  faculty,  the  mind. 

8  Ladd's  Elements  of  Physiological  Psychology  (1887),  p.  240, 
*  Some  practices  among  the  Greek  physicians  strike  us  as  peculiar.  The  fol- 
lowing is  too  characteristically  Greek  to  be  omitted.  Plato,  in  the  Gorgias,  tells  us 
that  sometimes  the  doctor  took  a  Sophist  along  with  him  to  persuade  the  patient 
to  take  his  prescription.  Professor  Mahaffy  comments  thus  upon  this  pracdce : 
This  was  done  because  it  was  the  fashion  to  discuss  everything  in  Greece,  and 
people  were  not  satisfied  to  submit  silently  to  anybody's  prescription,  either  in  law, 
politics,  religion,  or  medicine." 


MEDTCJNE   AND  ANATOMY.  541 

Pythagoras;  ih.  (ten  volume  ed.),  vol.  vii.  pp.  32-172;  (twelve  volume  ed.), 
vol.  viii.  pp.  350-496;  the  Sophists  and  Socrates.  Osborn,  From  the  Greeks 
to  Darwin,  pp.  29-68;  traces  the  development  of  the  idea  of  evolution 
among  the  Greek  Philosophers.  Burt,  A  Brief  History  of  Greek  Philosophy. 
Davidson,  The  Education  of  the  Greek  People,  ch.  v.,  on  the  teaching  of 
Socrates.  Lewes,  Biographical  History  of  Philosophy,  first  part.  Pater, 
Plato  and  Platonism.  Zeller,  The  Stoics,  Epicureans,  and  Sceptics  (from  the 
Cierman). 


542 


SOCIAL   LIFE    OF   THE    GREEKS. 


Fig.   75.     A    GREEK    SCHOOL.      (After  a  vase  painting.) 


CHAPTER    XXXI. 


SOCIAL   LIFE   OF  THE  GREEKS. 


Education.  —  Education  at  Sparta,  where  it  was  chiefly  gymnas- 
tic, as  we  have  seen,  was  a  state  affair  (p.  d'^)  ;  but  at  Athens  and 
throughout  Greece  generally,  the  youth  were  trained  in  private 
schools.  These  schools  were  of  all  grades,  ranging  from  those 
kept  by  the  most  obscure  teachers,  who  gathered  their  pupils  in 
some  recess  of  the  street,  to  those  estabhshed  in  the  Athenian 
Academy  and  Lyceum  by  such  philosophers  as  Plato  and  Aristotle. 

It  was  only  the  boys  who  received  education.  These  Grecian 
boys.  Professor  Mahaffy  imagines,  were  "  the  most  attractive  the 
world  has  ever  seen."  At  all  events,  we  may  believe  that  they 
were  trained  more  carefully  and  delicately  than  the  youth  among 
any  other  people  before  or  since  the  days  of  Hellenic  culture. 

In  the  nursery,  the  boy  was  taught  the  beautiful  myths  and 
stories  of  the  national  mythology  and  religion.^     At  about  seven 

1  At  the  birth  of  a  child,  many  customs  of  a  significant  character  were  carefully 
observed.    Thus  at  Sparta  the  new-born  infant  was  first  cradled  on  a  shield,  which 


EDUCATION.  543 

he  entered  school,  being  led  to  and  from  the  place  of  training  by 
on  old  slave,  who  bore  the  name  of  "  pedagogue,"  which  in  Greek 
means  a  guide  or  leader  of  boys  —  not  a  teacher.  His  studies 
were  grammar,  music,  and  gymnastics,  the  aim  of  the  course  being 
to  secure  a  symmetrical  development  of  mind  and  body  ahke. 


Fig.  76.     GYMNASTIC  EXERCISES. 

Grammar  included  reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic ;  music, 
which  embraced  a  wide  range  of  mental  accomplishments,  trained 
the  boy  to  appreciate  the  masterpieces  of  the  great  poets,  to  con- 
tribute  his  part  to  the   musical   diversions   of  private   entertain- 

symbolized  the  martial  life  of  the  Spartan  citizen ;  while  at  Athens  the  child  was 
laid  upon  a  mantle  in  which  was  wrought  the  aegis  of  Athena,  by  which  act  was 
emblemized  and  invoked  the  protection  of  that  patron  goddess.  Infanticide 
was  almost  universally  practised  throughout  Greece.  (At  Thebes,  however,  the 
exposure  of  children  was  prohibited  by  severe  laws.)  Such  philosophers  as  Plato 
and  Aristotle  saw  nothing  in  the  custom  to  condemn.  Among  the  Spartans,  as  we 
have  already  learned  (p.  68),  the  state  determined  what  infants  might  be  preserved, 
condemning  the  weakly  or  ill-formed  to  be  cast  out  to  die.  At  Athens  and  in  other 
states  the  right  to  expose  his  child  was  given  to  the  father.  The  infant  was  aban- 
doned in  some  desert  place,  or  left  in  some  frequented  spot  in  the  hope  that  it 
might  be  picked  up  and  cared  for.  Greek  literature,  like  that  of  every  other  people 
of  antiquity,  is  filled  with  stories  and  dramas,  all  turning  upon  points  afforded  by 
this  common  practice.  The  career  of  Sargon  of  AgadS,  of  Cyrus  the  Great  of 
Persia,  of  the  Hebrew  Moses,  of  CEdipus  of  Thebes,  of  Romulus  and  Remus  of 
Roman  legend,  and  a  hundred  others,  are  all  prefaced  by  the  same  story  of  exposure 
and  fortunate  rescue. 


544  SOCIAL   LIFE    OF   THE    GREEKS. 

ments,  and  to  join  in  the  sacred  choruses  and  in  the  paean  of 
the  battle-field.  The  exercises  of  the  palestrae  and  the  gymnasia 
trained  him  for  the  Olympic  contests,  or  for  those  sterner  hand- 
to-hand  battle-struggles,  in  which  so  much  depended  upon  per- 
sonal strength  and  dexterity. 

Upon  reaching  maturity,  the  youth  was  enrolled  in  the  list  of 
citizens.  But  his  graduation  from  school  was  his  "  commence- 
ment "  in  a  much  more  real  sense  than  with  the  average  modern 
graduate.  Never  was  there  a  people  besides  the  Greeks  whose 
daily  hfe  was  so  emphatically  a  discipline  in  liberal  culture.  The 
schools  of  the  philosophers,  the  debates  of  the  popular  assembly, 
the  practice  of  the  law-courts,  the  masterpieces  of  a  divine  art, 
the  religious  processions,  the  representations  of  an  unrivalled 
stage,  the  Panhellenic  games  —  all  these  were  splendid  and  effi- 
cient educational  agencies,  which  produced  and  maintained  a 
standard  of  average  intelligence  and  culture  among  the  citizens 
of  the  Greek  cities  that  probably  has  never  been  attained  among 
any  other  people  on  the  earth. ^  Freeman,  quoted  approvingly  by 
Mahaffy,  says  that  *'  the  average  intelligence  of  the  assembled 
Athenian  citizens  was  higher  than  that  of  our  [the  English] 
House  of  Commons." 

Social  Position  of  Woman.  —  Although  there  are  in  Greek 
literature  some  exquisitely  beautiful  portraitures  of  ideal  woman- 
hood, still  the  general  tone  of  the  literature  betrays  a  deep  con- 
tempt for  woman,  which  Symonds  regards  as  "  the  greatest  social 
blot  upon  the  brilliant  but  imperfect  civilization  of  the  Greeks." 
The  poets  are  particularly  sarcastic.  Simonides  winds  up  a  bitter 
invective  against  women  in  general,  in  which  he  compares  differ- 
ent classes  of  them  to  various  despicable  animals,  by  saying, 
*' Zeus  made  this  supreme  evil  —  women:  even  though  they 
seem  to  be  of  good,  when  one  has  got  one,  she  becomes  a 
plague."  And  another  poet  (Hipponax)  says,  "  A  woman  gives 
two  days  of  happiness  to  man  —  the  day  of  her  bridal  and  that  of 
her  burial."     Plato  does  not  entertain  a  high  opinion  of  the  sex, 

1  See  above,  p.  257,  n. 


SOCIAL    POSITIOX   OF   WOMAN:  545 

while  Thucydides  quotes  with  seeming  approval  the  Greek 
proverb,  —  "  That  woman  is  best  who  is  least  spoken  of  among 
men,  whether  for  good  or  for  evil." 

The  myth  of  Pandora  seems  to  have  sprung  up  out  of  just  such 
sentiments  as  the  above.  This  fable  evidently  reacted  upon  the 
feelings  and  practices  of  the  Greeks,  just  as  the  Oriental  story  of 
the  Fall  of  Man  through  the  temptation  of  Eve  contributed  to 
the  giving  of  woman  a  position  of  inferiority  and  subjection  in  the 
early  Christian  Church. 

This  unworthy  conception  of  woman  of  course  consigned  her  to 
a  narrow  and  inferior  place  in  the  Greek  home.  Her  position 
may  be  defined  as  being  about  half-way  between  Oriental  seclusion 
and  modern  or  Western  freedom.  Her  main  duties  were  to  cook 
and  spin,  and  to  oversee  the  domestic  slaves,  of  whom  she  herself 
was  practically  one.  In  the  fashionable  society  of  Ionian  cities, 
she  was  seldom  allowed  to  appear  in  public,  or  to  meet,  even  in 
her  own  house,  the  male  friends  of  her  husband.  In  Sparta,  how- 
ever, and  in  Dorian  states  generally  she  was  accorded  unusual 
freedom,  and  was  a  really  important  factor  in  society. 

The  great  liberty  enjoyed  by  the  women  of  Dorian  cities,  in 
contrast  with  the  seclusion  and  neglect  to  which  they  were  con- 
demned in  Ionian  communities,  is  doubtless  to  be  attributed,  in 
part  at  least,  to  the  influence  upon  the  latter  of  Asiatic  custom, 
entering  Greece  through  Ionia. 

The  low  position  generally  assigned  the  wife  in  the  home  had  a 
most  disastrous  effect  upon  Greek  morals.  She  could  exert  no 
such  elevating  or  refining  influence  as  she  exercises  in  the  modern 
home.  The  men  were  led  to  seek  social  and  intellectual  sym- 
pathy and  companionship  outside  the  family  circle,  among  a  class 
of  talented  and  often  highly  cultured  women,  known  as  Heta^rae. 
As  the  most  noted  and  brilliant  representative  of  this  class  stands 
Aspasia,  the  friend  of  Pericles.  Her  conversation  possessed  at- 
traction for  the  most  prominent  and  accomplished  men  of  Athens, 
such  persons  as  Socrates  and  Anaxagoras  often  assembling  at  her 
house.     Yet  the  influence  of  this  class  was  most  harmful  to  social 


546  SOCIAL   LIFE    OF   THE    GREEKS. 

morality,  so  that  to  the  degradation  of  woman  in  the  home  may- 
be traced  the  source  of  the  most  serious  stain  that  rests  upon 
Greek  civihzation. 

Friendship  among  the  Greeks.  —  From  speaking  of  the  inferior 
rank  assigned  woman  in  the  Greek  home,  we  are  led  by  a  natural 
transition  to  speak  of  Greek  friendship  between  men.  While  it 
seems  quite  certain  that  that  romantic  sentiment  to  which  we  give 
distinctively  the  name  of  love,  was  not  the  same  universal  and 
absorbing  passion  among  the  Greeks  that  it  is  among  modern 
civilized  peoples,  it  is  equally  certain  that  the  ancient  Greeks 
possessed  a  capacity  for  friendship  between  man  and  man  such 
as  is  rarely  or  never  seen  among  the  men  of  modern  times.  It 
would  scarcely  be  incorrect  to  say  that  the  Greek  men  "  fell  in 
love "  with  each  other.  An  ardent  and  romantic  attachment 
sprang  up  between  companions,  which  possessed  all  the  higher 
elements  of  that  chivalrous  sentiment  which  the  modern  man 
seems  capable  of  entertaining  only  for  one  of  the  opposite  sex. 
"  The  chivalry  of  Hellas  found  its  motive  force,"  writes  Symonds, 
"  in  friendship  rather  than  in  the  love  of  woman.  .  .  .  Fraternity 
in  arms  played  for  the  Greek  race  the  same  part  as  the  idealiza- 
tion of  woman  for  the  knighthood  of  Feudal  Europe." 

Greek  literature  and  history  afford  innumerable  instances 
of  this  wonderful  and  happy  capacity  of  the  Greeks  for  friend- 
ship. The  memory  easily  recalls  the  Homeric  picture  of  the 
friendship  between  Achilles  and  Patroclus ;  the  attachment, 
stronger  than  death,  between  Damon  and  Pythias ;  the  friend- 
ship of  the  patriot  heroes  Pelopidas  and  Epaminondas,  of  Alex- 
ander and  Hephaestion ;  and  the  attachments  that  united,  in 
bonds  dissolvable  only  by  death,  the  members  of  the  Sacred 
Band  of  Thebes. 

Theatrical  Entertainments.  —  Among  the  ancient  Greeks  the 
theatre  was  a  state  establishment,  "  a  part  of  the  constitution." 
This  arose  from  the  religious  origin  and  character  of  the  drama 
(p.  506),  all  matters  pertaining  to  the  popular  worship  being 
the  care    and    concern    of   the    state.     Theatrical    performances. 


THEATRICAL   ENTERTAINMENTS.  547 

being  religions  acts,  were  presented  only  during  religious  festivals, 
—  certain  festivals  observed  in  honor  of  Dionysus,  —  and  were 
attended  by  all  classes,  rich  and  poor,  men,  women,  and  children. 
The  women,  however,  except  the  Hetcerae,  were,  it  would  seem, 
permitted  to  witness  tragedies  only ;  the  comic  stage  was  too 
gross  to  allow  of  their  presence. 

The  upper  ranges  of  seats  in  the  theatre  were  reserved  for  the 
women ;  the  chairs  bordering  the  orchestra  were  for  the  officers 
of  the  state  and  other  persons  of  distinction  ; 
while  the  intervening  tiers  of  seats  were  oc- 
cupied by  the  general  audience.  The  spec- 
tators sat  under  the  open  sky ;  and  the  pieces 
followed  one  after  the  other  in  close  succes- 
sion from  early  morning  till  nightfall. 

While  the  better  class  of  actors  were 
highly  honored,  ordinary  players  were  held 
in  very  low  esteem,  in  which  matter  the 
Greek  stage  presents  a  parallel  to  that  of 
England  in  the  sixteenth  century.  And  as 
in  the  Elizabethan  age  the  writers  of  plays 
were  frequently  also  the  performers,  so  in 
Greece,  particularly  during  the  early  period 
of  the  drama,  the  author  often  became  an 
actor,  and  assisted  in  the  presentation  of 
his  own  pieces.  Still  another  parallel  is 
found  in  the  fact  that  the  female  parts  in 
the  Greek  dramas,  as  in  the  early  English 
theatre,  were  taken  by  men. 

The  stage  machinery  of  the  Greek  theatre 

°  ^  Fig.  77.     GREEK   TRAGIC 

and    the    costumes    of  the   actors  were  in-  figure. 

genious  and   elaborate.     There    were    mov- 
able scenes ;    trap- doors  and  various    machines   for   introducing 
the  infernal  and  celestial  divinities  and  swinging   them  through 
the  air ;  contrivances  for  imitating  all  the  familiar  sounds  of  the 
country,  the  roar  and  crash  of  storm  and  thunder,  and  all  the 


548  SOCIAL   LIFE    OF   THE    GREEK'S. 

noises  that  are  counterfeited  on  the  modern  stage.  The  tragic 
actor  increased  his  height  and  size  by  wearing  thick- soled  bus- 
kins, an  enormous  mask,  and  padded  garments.  The  actor  in 
comedy  wore  thin-soled  slippers,  or  socks.  The  sock  being  thus 
a  characteristic  part  of  the  make-up  of  the  ancient  comic  actor, 
and  the  buskin  that  of  the  tragic  actor,  these  foot-coverings  have 
come  to  be  used  as  the  symbols  respectively  of  comedy  and 
tragedy,  as  in  the  familiar  lines  of  Dryden  :  — 

"  Great  Fletcher  never  treads  in  buskins  here, 
Nor  greater  Jonson  dares  in  socks  appear." 

The  chorus  were  often  gorgeously  and  fantastically  costumed. 
Thus  in  the  play  of  the  Birds  by  Aristophanes,  they  were 
arrayed  each  to  represent  some  gay-plumaged  bird  ;  while  in  the 
C/ouds,  by  the  same  poet,  to  counterfeit  clouds  they  appeared 
in  the  midst  of  fleecy  drapery,  and  enveloped  in  the  smoke  of 
incense.  By  similar  devices  of  drapery  and  masks,  all  the  divin- 
ities and  monsters  known  to  Greek  mythology  were  brought 
before  the  spectators. 

The  expenses  of  the  choruses  were  defrayed  by  rich  citizens, 
who  at  Athens  were  chosen  by  the  different  tribes  in  turn.  The 
person  elected  to  provide  the  chorus  was  known  as  the  "  choragus." 
He  often  spent  large  sums  in  competition  with  other  leaders. 
The  choragus  who  presented  the  best  chorus  was  awarded  a  prize, 
and  was  allowed  the  privilege  of  erecting,  at  his  own  expense,  a 
monument  in  commemoration  of  his  victory.^ 

The  theatre  exerted  a  great  influence  upon  Greek  life.  It  per- 
formed for  ancient  Greek  society  somewhat  the  same  service  as 
that  rendered  to  modern  society  by  the  pulpit  and  the  press. 
During  the  best  days  of  Hellas  the  frequent  rehearsal  upon  the 
stage  of  the  chief  incidents  in  the  lives  of  the  gods  and  the  heroes 
served  to  deepen  and  strengthen  the  religious  faith  of  the  people ; 
and  later,  when  with  the  Macedonian  the  days  of  decline  came,  the 
stage  was  one  of  the  chief  agents  in  the  diffusion  of  Greek  literary 
1  See  cut  of  "  Choragic  Monument  of  Lysicrates,"  p.  482. 


BANQUETS  AND  SYMPOSIA. 


549 


culture  over  the  world.  Theatres  arose  everywhere,  and  it  was 
chiefly  through  the  popular  representations  of  the  stage  that  a 
knowledge  of  the  best  productions  of  Greek  literature  was  im- 
parted to  the  mixed  population  of  the  Hellenistic  cities  of  Egypt 
and  Western  Asia,  and  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  cities  of  Italy  as 
well. 

Banquets  and  Symposia.  — Banquets  and  drinking-parties 
among  the  Greeks  possessed  some  features  which  set  them  apart 
from  similar  entertainment  among  other  people. 


Fig.   78.     A    BANQUET    SCENE. 

The  banquet  proper  was  partaken,  in  later  times,  by  the  guest 
in  a  reclining  position,  upon  couches  or  divans,  arranged  about 
the  table  in  the  Oriental  manner.  After  the  usual  courses,  a  liba- 
tion was  poured  out  and  a  hymn  sung  in  honor  of  the  gods,  and 
then  followed  that  characteristic  part  of  the  entertainment  known 
as  the  "symposium." 

The  symposium  was  "  the  intellectual  side  of  the  feast."  It 
consisted  of  general  conversation,  riddles,  and  convivial  songs 
rendered  to  the  accompaniment  of  the  lyre  passed  from  hand  to 
hand.  Generally  professional  singers  and  musicians,  dancing- 
girls,  jugglers,  and  jesters,  were    called  in  to  contribute   to   the 


550  SOCIAL   LIFE    OF   THE    GREEKS. 

merry-making.  All  the  while  the  wine-bowl  circulated  freely, 
the  rule  being  that  a  man  might  drink  **  as  much  as  he  could 
carry  home  without  a  guide,  —  unless  he  were  far  gone  in  years." 
Here  also  the  Greeks  applied  their  maxim,  "Never  too  much." 
Besotted  drunkenness,  though  by  no  means  unknown  in  Greece, 
was  always  regarded  as  a  most  disgraceful  thing. 

The  banqueters  usually  consumed  the  night  in  merry-making, 
sometimes  being  broken  in  upon  from  the  street  by  other  bands 
of  revellers,  who  made  themselves  self-invited  guests. 

The  symposium  must  at  times,  when  the  conversation  was 
sustained  by  such  persons  as  Socrates  and  Aristophanes,  have 
been  "  a  feast  of  reason  and  a  flow  of  soul "  indeed.  Xenophon 
in  his  Banquet  and  Plato  in  his  Symposium  have  each  left  us  a 
striking  report  of  such  an  entertainment. 

Occupations.  —  The  enormous  body  of  slaves  in  ancient  Greece 
(see  next  paragraph)  relieved  the  free  population  from  most  of 
those  forms  of  labor  classed  as  drudgery.  The  aesthetic  Greek 
regarded  as  degrading  any  kind  of  manual  labor  that  marred  the 
symmetry  or  beauty  of  the  body. 

At  Sparta,  and  in  other  states  where  oligarchical  constitutions 
prevailed,  the  citizens  formed  a  sort  of  military  caste,  strikingly 
similar  to  the  mihtary  aristocracy  of  Feudal  Europe.  Their  chief 
occupation,  as  has  already  appeared,  was  martial  and  gymnastic 
exercises  and  the  administration  of  public  affairs.  The  Spartans, 
it  will  be  recalled,  were  forbidden  by  law  to  engage  in  trade.  In 
other  aristocratic  states,  as  at  Thebes,  a  man  by  engaging  in  trade 
disqualified  himself  for  full  citizenship. 

In  the  democratic  states,  however,  speaking  generally,  labor  and 
trade  were  regarded  with  less  contempt.  A  considerable  portion 
of  the  citizens  were  traders,  artisans,  and  farmers. 

Life  at  Athens  presented  some  pecuhar  features.  All  Attica 
being  included  in  what  we  should  term  the  corporate  limits  of  the 
city,  the  roll  of  Athenian  citizens  included  a  large  body  of  well-to- 
do  farmers,  whose  residence  was  outside  the  city  walls.^     The  Attic 

1  See  above,  p.  284. 


OCCUPATIONS.  551 

plains,  and  the  slopes  of  the  encircling  hills,  were  dotted  with 
beautiful  villas  and  inviting  farmhouses.  ''  It  is  probable,"  says  a 
well-known  student  of  Greek  life,  in  speaking  of  the  appearance 
of  the  country  about  Athens  just  before  the  Peloponnesian  War, 
"  that  as  a  scene  of  unambitious  affluence,  taste,  high  cultivation, 
and  rustic  contentment,  nothing  was  ever  beheld  to  compare  with 
Attica."  ^ 

And  then  Athens  being  the  head  of  a  great  empire  of  sub- 
ject cities,  a  large  number  of  Athenian  citizens  were  necessarily 
employed  as  salaried  officials  in  the  minor  positions  of  the  public 
service,  and  thus  politics  became  a  profession.  In  any  event, 
the  meetings  of  the  popular  assembly  and  the  discussion  of  mat- 
ters of  state  engrossed  more  or  less  of  the  time  and  attention  of 
every  citizen. 

Again,  the  great  Athenian  jury-courts  (p.  262),  which  were 
busied  with  cases  from  all  parts  of  the  empire,  gave  constant 
employment  to  nearly  one-fourth  of  the  citizens,  the  fee  that  the 
juryman  received  enabling  him  to  live  without  other  business. 
It  is  said  that,  in  the  early  morning,  when  the  jurymen  were  pass- 
ing through  the  streets  to  the  different  courts,  Athens  appeared 
like  a  city  wholly  given  up  to  the  single  business  of  law.  Further- 
more, the  great  public  works,  such  as  temples  and  commemorative 
monuments,  which  were  in  constant  process  of  erection,  afforded 
employment  for  a  vast  number  of  artists  and  skilled  workmen  of 
every  class.^ 

In  the  Agora,  again,  at  any  time  of  the  day,  a  numerous  class 
might  have  been  found,  whose  sole  occupation,  as  in  the  case  of 
Socrates,  was  to  talk.  The  writer  of  the  "  Acts  of  the  Apostles  " 
was  so  impressed  with  this  feature  of  life  at  Athens  that  he  sum- 
marized the  habits  of  the  people  by  saying,  "  All  the  Athenians 
and  strangers  which  were  there  spent  their  time  in  nothing  else 
but  either  to  tell  or  to  hear  some  new  thing." 

1  St.  John,  History  of  the  Manners  and  Customs  of  Ancient  Greece. 

2  For  an  enumeration  of  the  different  classes  at  Athens  that  received  pay  from 
the  state  treasury,  see  above,  p.  262,  n.  2. 


552  SOCIAL  LIFE    OF   THE    GREEKS. 

Slavery.  —  There  is  a  dark  side  to  Greek  life.  Hellenic  art, 
culture,  refinement  — "  these  good  things  were  planted,  like  ex- 
quisite exotic  flowers,  upon  the  black,  rank  soil  of  slavery." 

Slaves  were  very  numerous  in  Greece.  No  exact  estimate  can 
be  made  of  their  number,  but  it  is  believed  that  they  greatly 
outnumbered  the  free  population.  Almost  every  freeman  was  a 
slave  owner.  It  was  accounted  a  real  hardship  to  have  to  get 
along  with  less  than  half  a  dozen  slaves. 

This  large  class  of  slaves  was  formed  in  various  ways.  In  the 
prehistoric  period,  the  fortunes  of  war  had  brought  the  entire 
population  of  whole  provinces  into  a  servile  condition,  as  in  cer- 
tain parts  of  the  Peloponnesus.  During  later  times,  the  ordinary 
captives  of  war  still  further  augmented  the  ranks  of  these  unfor- 
tunates. Their  number  was  also  largely  added  to  by  the  slave 
traffic  carried  on  with  the  barbarian  peoples  of  Asia.  Criminals 
and  debtors,  too,  were  often  condemned  to  servitude ;  while 
foundlings  were  usually  brought  up  as  slaves. 

The  relation  of  master  and  slave  was  regarded  by  the  Greek 
as  being,  not  only  a  legal,  but  a  natural  one.  A  free  community, 
in  his  view,  could  not  exist  without  slavery.  It  formed  the  nat- 
ural basis  of  both  the  family  and  the  state,  —  the  relation  of 
master  and  slave  being  regarded  as  "strictly  analogous  to  the 
relation  of  soul  and  body."  Even  Aristotle  and  other  Greek 
philosophers  approved  the  maxim  that ''  slaves  were  simply  domes- 
tic animals  possessed  of  intelligence."^  They  were  regarded  just 
as  necessary  in  the  economy  of  the  family  as  cooking  utensils. 

In  general,  Greek   slaves  were  not   treated  harshly — judging 

1  This  harsh,  selfish  theory,  it  should  be  noted,  was  somewhat  modified  and 
relaxed,  when  the  slave  class,  through  the  numerous  captives  of  the  unfortunate 
civil  wars,  came  to  be  tnade  up  in  considerable  part  of  cultured  Greeks,  instead  of 
being,  as  was  the  case  in  earlier  times,  composed  almost  exclusively  of  barbarians, 
or  of  inferior  branches  of  the  Hellenic  race,  between  whom  and  their  cultured 
masters  there  was  the  same  difference  in  mental  qualities  as  existed  between  the 
negro  slaves  and  their  masters  in  our  own  country.  The  sentiment  that  a  slave 
was  an  unfortunate  person,  rather  than  an  inferior  being,  came  to  prevail  —  a 
sentiment  which  aided  powerfully  in  preparing  the  way  for  the  Christian  doctrine  q\ 
the  universal  brotherhood  of  man, 


SLA  VER  V.  553 

their  treatment  by  the  standard  of  humanity  that  prevailed  in  an- 
tiquity. Some  held  places  of  honor  in  the  family,  and  enjoyed  the 
confidence  and  even  the  friendship  of  their  master.  Yet  at  Sparta, 
where  slavery  assumed  the  form  of  serfdom,  the  lot  of  the  slave 
was  peculiarly  hard  and  unendurable.  Even  at  Athens  we  hear 
much,  in  connection  with  the  state  silver  mines  at  Laurium,  of  a 
labor  contract-system  which  certainly  was  characterized  by  much 
callousness  of  feeling  towards  the  slave,  if  we  may  judge  from  the 
conditions  of  the  usual  agreement,  which  bound  the  contractor  to 
pay  an  annual  rental  equal  to  one-half  the  value  of  the  slave  (which 
implies  that  the  poor  creatures  were  worn  out  rapidly),  and  at  the 
expiration  of  the  contract  to  return  to  the  owner  simply  f/ie  same 
7iumber  of  slaves  as  had  been  hired. 

If  ever  slavery  was  justified  by  its  fruits,  it  was  in  Greece.  The 
brilliant  civilization  of  the  Greeks  was  its  product,  and  could  never 
have  existed  without  it.  As  one  truthfully  says,  "  Without  the 
slaves  the  Attic  democracy  would  have  been  an  impossibility,  for 
they  alone  enabled  the  poor,  as  well  as  the  rich,  to  take  a  part  in 
pubHc  affairs,"  Relieving  the  citizen  of  all  drudgery,  the  system 
created  a  class  characterized  by  elegant  leisure,  refinement,  and 
culture. 

We  find  an  almost  exact  historical  parallel  to  all  this  in  the 
feudal  aristocracy  of  Mediaeval  Europe.  Such  a  society  has  been 
well  likened  to  a  great  pyramid,  whose  top  may  be  gilded  with 
light,  while  its  base  lies  in  dark  shadows.  The  civilization  of 
ancient  Hellas  was  splendid  and  attractive,  but  it  rested  with  a 
crushing  weight  upon  all  the  lower  orders  of  Greek  society. 

References.  —  Blumner,  The  Home  Life  of  the  Ancient  Greeks  (from  the 
German).  Davidson,  The  Education  of  the  Greek  People.  Mahaffy,  6f7rm/ 
LJfe  in  Greece ;  Old  Greek  Education ;  Greek  Life  and  Thought  (selected 
chapters);  and  Old  Greek  Life  (History  Primer).  Felton,  Greece^  Ancient 
and  Modern^  vol.  i.  pp.  271-51 1;  pictures  various  aspects  of  the  life  of 
Greece.  St.  John,  The  Hellenes.  Guhl  and  Koner,  Life  of  the  Greeks  and 
the  Romans  (from  the  German) ;  first  part.  Jowett's  Aristotle,  Politics, 
ch,  viii.;    on  education, 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 


The  following  bibliography  includes  merely  the  most  important  and  easily  obtained  works 
on  Greek  history,  classified  by  periods  and  subjects.  Only  books  in  the  English  language  are 
mentioned.  Other  titles  will  be  found  in  Adams'  Manual  of  Historical  Literature.  This, 
book  should  be  in  the  hands  of  every  historical  student.  Hall's  Method  of  Teachitig  and 
Studying  History,  Part  III.,  by  Professor  William  F.  Allen,  contains  a  short  list  of  books. 
Andr&vis'  Institutes  of  General  History  has  also  some  valuable  references.  The  footnotes 
in  Grote's  History  indicate  all  the  original  sources  known  when  he  wrote.  To  these  must 
now  be  added  the  lately  found  Aristotelian  treatise  on  the  Athenian  Constitution.  The 
text  may  be  studied  in  Kenyon's  Aristotle  on  the  Constitiition  of  Athens.  An  English 
translation  by  Professor  E.  Poste  is  published  by  Macmillan  &  Co. 

Geography  and  Topography.  —  Freeman,  Historical  Geography  of 
Europe^  part  on  Greece;  contains  suggestive  paragraphs.  Bunbury,  History 
of  Ancient' Geography,  2  vols.  Tozer,  Lectures  on  the  Geography  of  Greece  ; 
also  the  same  author's  Classical  Geography.  Leake,  Travels  in  Northern 
Greece,  4  vols. ;  valuable  for  consultation  on  special  topographical  points. 
Kiepert,  Manual  of  Ancient  Geography  (from  the  German),  pp.  138-179. 
Dyer,  Ancient  Athens,  its  History.,  Topography^  and  Remains.  In  all  the 
short  and  the  extended  histories  of  Greece,  —  Smith's,  Grote's,  Curtius', 
Oman's,  Cox's,  Thirlwall's,  Abbott's,  etc.,  —  will  be  found  special  chapters  on 
the  geography  of  the  country. 

Mythology  and  the  Heroic  Age.  —  Cox,  Mythology  of  the  Aryan 
Nations,  2  vols.;  indispensable;  also  the  same  author's  Introduction  to  the 
Science  of  Comparative  Mythology  and  Folklore.  Keightley,  Mythology  of 
Ancient  Greece  and  Rome.  Collignon,  Manual  of  Mythology  (translated  from 
the  French  by  Jane  E.  Harrison).  Verrall  and  Harrison,  Mythology  and 
Monuments  of  Ancient  Athens.  Rev.  W.  Cox,  Tales  of  the  Gods  and  Heroes 
and  Tales  of  Thebes  and  Argos.  Petiscus,  The  Gods  of  Olynipos  (from  the 
German) ;  elementary  manual  on  mythology.  Gueber,  Myths  of  Greece  and 
Rome  ;  a  useful  handbook.  Gayley,  77;^  Classic  Myths  in  English  Literature  ; 
a  revision  and  expansion  by  a  competent  hand  of  Bulfinch's  "  Age  of  Fable." 
Gladstone,  Juventus  Mundi  and  Studies  on  Homer  and  the  Homeric  Age, 
3  vols.      Schliemann,   Troy  atid  its  Remains  (from  the  German),  Mycence, 

555 


556  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

Tiryns,  and  Ilios  ;  all  well-known  works  of  the  highest  archaeological  interest 
and  value.  Benjamin,  Troy :  its  Legends,  History,  ami  Literature  {M^och?,  of 
Ancient  History).  Symonds,  'J'he  Greek  Poets,  vol.  i.  ch.  ii.  Grote,  History 
of  Greece,  vol.  i.,  particularly  chs.  xvi.  and  xvii. 

Short  General  Histories.  —  Fyffe,  History  of  Greece  (Primer).  Yonge, 
Young  Folks'  History  of  Greece.  Smith,  History  of  Greece  and  Smaller 
History  of  Greece;  Cox,  History  of  Greece  ;  Keightley,  History  of  Greeee ; 
Oman,  History  of  Greece  —  these  are  all  one  volume  histories.  Felton, 
Lectures  on  Ancient  and  Modern  Greece,  2  vols.;  a  work  of  great  popularity, 
dealing  chiefly  with  literature,  social  life,  and  political  institutions.  Timayenis, 
History  of  Greece,  2  vols.;  a  spirited  narrative.  Harrison,  The  Story  of  Greece 
(Story  of  the  Nations).  Ranke,  Universal  History  (from  the  German), 
vol.  i.  pp.  116-469;  valuable  for  its  broad  generalizations  and  profound 
insight. 

Extended  Histories.  —  Grote,  History  of  Greece  (ed.  of  1888),  10  vols.; 
the  l)est  extended  history,  sympathies  strongly  democratic,  Thirhvall,  History 
of  Greece  (ed.  of  1845),  8  vols.;  written  from  the  aristocratic  point  of  view. 
Mitford,  History  of  Greece  (seventh  ed.),  8  vols. ;  old,  and  deformed  by  Tory 
prejudices.  Read  Macaulay's  essay  entitled  "  On  Mitford's  History  of  Greece." 
Curtius,  History  of  Greece  (from  the  German),  5  vols. ;  the  large  and  compre- 
hensive surveys  of  the  author  make  his  work  the  most  suggestive  of  all  the 
histories  on  Greece;  the  author's  views,  however,  on  the  earlier  history  of 
Hellas  can  hardly  be  accepted  without  considerable  reserve.  Duncker, 
History  of  Greece  (Abbott's  trans.),  4  vols.  Abbott,  History  of  Greece ;  only 
vols.  i.  and  ii.  have  yet  appeared,  which  carry  the  narrative  to  the  Thirty 
Years'  Peace,  445  B.C.  Victor  Duruy,  History  of  Greece  and  of  the  Greek 
People  (from  the  French),  4  vols.;  profusely  illustrated.  Holm,  History  of 
Greece  (from  the  German)  ;   only  the  first  volume  has  yet  appeared  in  English, 

Special  Periods  of  the  Historical  Age. — Cox,  Ihe  Greek  and  the 
Persian.,  and'  The  Athenian  Ejnpire ;  Sankey,  The  Spartan  and  Theban 
Supremacies  ;  Curteis,  The  Macedonian  Empire,  are  found  in  the  Epochs  of 
Ancient  History;  they  afford  good  summaries  of  the  periods  that  they  respec- 
tively cover.  Mahaffy,  Problems  in  Greek  History.,  ch.  iv.  on  the  Tyrants,  and 
ch.  vii.  on  practical  politics  in  the  fourth  century  B.C.  Cox,  George  W.,  History 
of  Greece,  2  vols,  (new  ed.,  1878);  carries  the  narrative  to  the  end  of  the 
Peloponnesian  War.  Lloyd,  The  Age  of  Pericles.,  2  vols.  ;  a  scholarly  work. 
Abbott,  Pericles  and  the  Golden  Age  of  Athens  (Heroes  of  the  Nations);  a 
popular  sketch  by  a  master.  Grant,  Greece  in  the  Age  of  Pericles  (University 
Series).  Mahaffy,  77ie  Story  of  Alexander'' s  Empire;  special  chapters 
possess  great  interest.  Dodge,  Alexander  (Great  Captain  Series) ;  deals 
chiefly  with  the   campaigns  of  Alexander.     Torr,  Rhodes  in  Ancient   'Times. 


BIB  LIO  GRA  PH  Y.  557 

Finley,  Greece  under  the  Romans;  carries  on  the  story  of  Cireece  from 
140  B.C.  to  717  A.D.  Freeman,  The  History  of  Sicily  from  the  Earliest 
Times,  4  vols.  This  great  work  was  left  unfinished  through  the  untimely 
death  of  the  author.  The  last  volume  brings  the  story  down  to  the  death  of 
Agathocles,  289  B.C. 

Finance  and  Politics.  —  Boeckh,  The  Public  Economy  of  the  Athenians 
(from  the  German);  the  acknowledged  authority  on  the  financial  history  of 
Athens.  Coulanges,  The  Ancient  City  (from  the  French) ;  a  standard  work 
on  the  institutions  of  primitive  classical  society.  Fowler,  I'he  City-State  of 
the  Greeks  and  Romans;  should  be  read  along  with  the  preceding;  also 
Hearn,  The  Aryan  Household,  its  Structure  and  its  Develop/nent.  Miiller, 
History  and  Antiquities  of  the  Doric  Race  (from  the  German),  2  vols.; 
indispensable  for  the  study  of  Dorian  institutions.  Freeman,  History  of 
Federal  Government  (new  ed.,  1893);  deals  with  the  attempts  at  federation 
among  the  Greeks  —  is  the  best  authority  on  the  subject.  Wilson,  The 
State,  pp.  33-94 ;  these  few  pages  on  the  government  of  Greece  give 
an  excellent  resume  of  Greek  political  institutions.  Schomann,  The  Antiq- 
uities of  Greece  (from  the  German),  vol.  i.  on  ''The  State,"  and  "The 
Athenian  Constitution."  Botsford,  The  Development  of  the  Earlier  Athenian 
Constitution  ;  an  admirable  monograph.  Heeren,  Historical  Researches,  vol. 
vi.  Hart,  Introduction  to  the  Study  of  Federal  Government ;  on  p.  28  will 
be  found  a  good  bibliography  on  Greek  confederations. 

Architecture,  Sculpture,  and  Painting.  —  A  few  of  the  best  Ijooks  on 
this  subject  have  already  been  mentioned  above,  p.  499.  For  a  more 
extended  study  the  following  works  may  be  added  to  the  list  there  given.  We 
give  simply  the  titles  without  special  references  to  volume  and  chapter. 
Fergusson,  History  of  Architecture,  and  Handbook  of  Architecture.  Pater, 
Greek  Studies  ;  the  essays  on  sculpture  and  architecture.  Harrison,  Intro- 
ductory  Studies  in  Greek  Art.  Von  Reber,  History  of  Ancient  Art  (from  the 
German).  Winckelmann,  History  of  Ancient  Art  (from  the  German). 
Woltmann  and  Woermann,  History  of  Painting  (from  the  (ierman).  LUbke, 
History  of  Art  (from  the  German).  Waldstein,  Essays  on  the  Art  of  Pheidias. 
Lessing,  The  Laoco'on  (from  the  German). 

Literature.  —  See  list  of  books  given  on  p.  520.  In  addition  to  the 
works  there  named,  the  advanced  student  will  consult  the  following :  Miiller 
and  Donaldson,  History  of  the  Literature  of  Ancient  Greece,  3  vols.  Mure, 
A  Critical  History  of  the  Language  and  Literature  of  Ancient  Greece,  5  vols.; 
for  minute  and  critical  study.      Moulton,  The  Ancient  Classical  Drama. 

Philosophy.  —  See  references  above,  p.  540.  Note  also  the  followmg : 
Ueberweg,  History  of  Philosophy  (from  the  German),  vol  i.  pp.  18-259;  for 
critical  study.     Newmann,  The  Politics  of  Aristotle,  \o\.  i.,  Introduction;   for 


558  BIBLIOGRAPHY. 

advanced  students.  Plato's  Works  (translated  by  Jowett).  Aristotle's  Poli- 
tics (Jowett's  translation).  Zeller,  Outlines  of  the  History  of  Greek  Philosophy, 
and  Socrates  anil^  the  Socratic  Schools  (from  the  German).      Burnet,  Early 

Greek  Philosophy.     Davidson,  Aristotle  (Great  Educators),  Part  III. 

Social  Life  and  Religious  System.  —  MahafiFy,  Rambles  and  Studies 
in   Greece,  Social  Life  in    Greece,  Greek  Life  and  Thought,  ^wA    7  he   Greek 

World  under  Roman  Sivay ;  all  these  works  are  as  scholarly  as  they  are 
inspiring  and  entertaining.  Dyer,  Studies  of  the  Gods  in  Greece;  gives  the 
results  of  the  most  recent  explorations  on  the  sites  of  old  Greek  temples. 
Becker,  Charicles  ;  an  historical  novel  —  the  notes  are  the  most  valuable  part 
of  the  work.  Felton,  Lectures  on  Ancient  and  Modern  Greece,  2d  course, 
"  Life  of  Greece."  St.  John,  Ilie  Hellenes  :  The  History  of  the  Manners  of 
the  Ancient  Greeks,  3  vols.  Guhl  and  Koner,  The  Life  of  the  Greeks  and 
Romans  (from  the  German).  Abbott,  Ilellenica  ;  a  collection  of  scholarly 
monographs  on  different  subjects.  Davidson,  The  Education  of  the  Greek 
People  (International  Education  Series).  Gardner,  Nexo  Chapters  in  Greek 
History ;  an  interesting  and  authoritative  summary  of  the  contribution  made 
by  recent  archaeological  discoveries  to  our  knowledge  of  the  arts,  home  life, 
and  religion  of  the  ancient  Greeks.  The  Joicrnal  of  Hellenic  Studies  (pub- 
lished by  the  Society  for  the  Promotion  of  Hellenic  Studies)  ;  contains  valuable 
articles  on  a  wide  range  of  classical  subjects.  In  the  Eorum  for  May,  1895, 
will  be  found  an  article  by  Professor  Paul  Shorey,  entitled  "Can  We 
Revive  the  Olympic  Games?"  This  is  a  paper  of  rare  interest  and  a 
timely  protest  against  the  introduction  of  the  commercial  and  professional 
spirit  into  modern  athleticism.  For  a  few  additional  references,  see 
above,   p.  58. 


INDEX    AND    PRONOUNCING    VOCABU- 
LARY. 


Note.  —  In  the  case  of  words  whose  correct  pronunciation  has  not  seemed 
clearly  indicated  by  their  accentuation  and  syllabication,  the  sounds  of  the  letters 
have  been  denoted  thus:  a,  like  a  \n gray ;  a  like  a,  only  less  prolonged;  a,  like  a 
in  have  ;  a,  like  a  m/dr  ;  e,  like  ee  vn.  feet ;  e,  like  e  in  end ;  €  and  -eh,  like  k  ;  9,  like 
s ;  g,  like//  §,  like  z. 


Ab-de'ra,  founded,  132,  n.  3. 
A-by'dos,  first  sea-fight  of,  386,  n.  i ; 

second  sea-fight,  387. 
A-can'thus,  172;  revolts  from  Athens, 

322,  z-^-z- 

A-cas'tus,  king  of  Athens,  103,  n.  2. 

A-cer'a-tus,  prophet  of  Apollo,  192. 

A-chos'an  league,  460,  461. 

A-ehee'ans,  in  the  Heroic  Age,  13; 
subjected  by  Dorians,  29,  27;  rela- 
tion of  their  civilization  to  that  of 
the  Dorians,  27. 

A-ehDe'us,  12,  n. 

Achaia  (a-ka'ya),  descript'on  of,  3; 
origin  of  name,  27. 

A-€har'nce,  284,  n.  I. 

A-eh'e-lo'us,  river,  6. 

A-eh'e-ron,  river,  7, 

A-ehil'les,  22,  23. 

Ac'ra-gas  (see  Agrigentuni) . 

A-crop'o-lis,  a  feature  of  Greek  cities, 
36. 

Acropolis,  the,  at  Athens,  buildings  on 
destroyed  by  Persians,  197;  de- 
scription of,  477;  buildings  on,  479. 

Ad'ei-man'tus,     Corinthian    captain, 

199- 
A-dras'tus,  king  of  Argos,  20. 
^'gse,  429,  n. 
^gicores,  112,  n. 
^-ge'an  Sea,  islands  in,  8. 
^-gi'na,  island,  9;  Pheidon's  mint  in, 

60;  quarrel  with  Athens,  150-152; 

fall   of,    245,    246  ;    sculptures    of 

temple  at,  487. 


yEginetan  scales  and  measures,  60, 
yEginetans,    give     hostages    to     the 
Athenians,  151,  153;   war  with  the 
Athenians,  159,  160;  expelled  from 
their  island  by  the  Athenians,  285 ; 
restored  by  Lysander,  392. 
/E-gis'thus,  25. 
/E'gos-pot'a-mi,  capture  of  Athenian 

fleet  at,  391, 
/E-ne'as,   24. 
/E-o'li-ans,  the,  13  ;  early  settlements 

in  Asia  Minor,  28. 
yE'o-lus,  12,  n.,  43,  n, 
yiis'^hi-nes,  is  bribed  by  Philip,  435; 
incites  the  Amphictyons  to   make 
war  on  the  Phocians  of  Amphissa, 
436;  opposes  Demosthenes,  517. 
^s'^hy-lus,  tragic  poet,  508. 
.^s'cu-la'pi-us,  540,  n.  i. 
^-to'li-an  league,  461,  462. 
Ag'a-mem'non,  16,  22, 
A-gath'oc-les,  tyrant  of  Syracuse,  428. 
Ag'e-san'der,  496. 

A-ges'i-la'us,  Spartan  king,  conducts 
campaign  against  Persians  in  Asia 
Minor,  403. 
A'gis,  Spartan  king,  332;   falls  into 
disgrace,   332;    at  Mantinea,  332; 
in  command  at  Decelea,  376;    at 
the  siege  of  Athens  (404  B.C. ),  393. 
Ag'o-ra,  the,  in  the  Heroic  Age,  31. 
Ag'ri-gen'tum,   founded,    85;     under 
the  tyrant  Phaleris,  96,  97;   sacked 
by  Carthaginians,  420. 
A  hu'ra  Maz'da  (see  Ormuzii). 


559 


560 


INDEX. 


A'jax,  the  son  of  Oileus,  23;   the  son 
ofTelamon,  22. 

Al-cae'us,  lyric  poet,  504. 

Al'ci-bi'a-de§,  personal  traits,  329; 
manages  the  Athenian-Argive 
alliance,  330;  given  command  in 
the  Sicilian  Expedition,  327;  crit- 
icised by  Nicias,  338;  speech  in 
favor  of  the  Sicilian  Expedition, 
339-341 ;  charged  with  mutilation 
of  the  HerniK,  343;  proposes  plan 
of  campaign  in  .Sicily,  349;  his 
recall  to  Athens,  350;  his  flight, 
351 ;  sentence  against,  by  Athe- 
nians, 352;  his  counsel  to  the 
Spartans,  357;  incites  the  Chians 
to  revolt  from  Athens,  379;  incites 
the  lonians  to  revolt  against 
Athens,  380;  effects  alliance  be- 
tween Tissaphernes  and  Sparta, 
380;  at  the  court  of  Tissaphernes, 
381 ;  his  part  in  the  conspiracy  of 
the  Four  Hundred,  382,  383,  384; 
his  recall,  383;  gains  victories  for 
the  Athenians,  386;  his  return  to 
Athens,  387;  takes  part  in  the 
celebration  of  the  Eleusinian  Mys- 
teries, 388;  is  deposed  from  his 
command,  388;  withdraws  to  the 
Chersonese,  388;  his  death,  390,  n. 

Al^'mi^-on'i-dne,  the,  alleged  treason 
of,  157;  banishment  of,  109,  n.  2; 
contract  to  rebuild  temple  at  Delphi, 
119. 

A-leu'a-die,  Thessalian  princes,  join 
the  Persians,  165. 

Alexander  the  Great,  his  youth  and 
accession  to  the  throne,  440,  441 ; 
destroys  Thebes,  442;  crosses  the 
Hellespont,  442;  at  the  tomb  of 
Achilles,  443;  at  the  battle  of 
(jtranicus,  443;  cuts  the  Gordian 
knot,  443;  at  the  battle  of  Issus, 
444;  at  the  siege  of  Tyre,  444;  in 
Egypt,  446;  at  Arbela,  446;  at 
Babylon,  447;  at  Persepolis,  447; 
in  Bactria  and  Sogdiana,  448 ;  in 
India,  449;  his  plans,  45 1;  his 
speech  to  mutinous  soldiers  at  Opis, 
452;  his  death,  453;  his  character, 
453;  results  of  his  conquests,  454; 
partition  of  his  empire,  456. 


Alexander,  prince  of  Macedonia,  the 
messenger  of  Mardonius  to  the 
Athenians,  210,  211,  212. 

Alexander  the  Younger,  456,  n.  i. 

Alexander,  tyrant  of  Pherge,  415. 

Alexandria,  in  Egypt,  founded,  446; 
in  India,  founded,  450. 

Alexandrian  Age,  literature  of,   518, 

519. 
Alexandrian  Library,  467. 
Al-phe'us,  river,  7. 
A-ma'sis,  king  of  Egypt,  95,  96;  forms 

alliance  with  Croesus,  130. 
Am'a-zons,  defeat  of,  by  Theseus,  18. 
Am-bra'ci-a,  established,  83. 
Ambraciots,  the,  308,  n. 
Ampe,  146. 
Am'phi-a-ra'us,  20. 
Am-phic'ty-o-ny,  the,  53,  54. 
Am-phip'o-lis,   founded,   260;    opens 

its  gates  to  Brasidas,  323  ;    battle 

of,   325;    captured   by    Philip   II., 

431. 

Am-phis'sa,  inhabitants  of,  pro- 
nounced guilty  of  sacrilege,  436. 

A-nab'a-sis,  the,  of  Xenophon,  515. 

A-na'cre-on,  lyric  poet,  at  court  of 
Polycrates,  95;   his  poetry,  504. 

A-nac-to'ri-um,  founded,  83. 

A-na'pus,  river,  369. 

An'ax-ag'o-ras,  prosecution  of,  257 
n.  ;    his  philosophy,  526. 

A-nax'i-man'der,  522. 

An'ax-im'e-neg,  522. 

Ancestors,  worship  of,  among  the 
Greeks,  39. 

An-€hi'ses,  24. 

An'dros,  in  the  Persian  Wars,  206. 

An-tal'^i-das,  Peace  of,  404;  its  exe- 
cution by  Sparta,  405. 

An-tig'o-ne,  20. 

Antioch,  464. 

An-ti'o-«hus  III.,  the  Great,  king  of 
Syria,  464;   IV.,  465. 

Antio-ehus,  Athenian  general,  389. 

An-tip'a-ter,  459. 

An'ti-phon,  Athenian  orator,  516. 

Apella,  the  general  assembly  at 
Sparta,  66. 

A-pel'le§,  painter,  498. 

Aph'ro-di'te,  cult  of,  41;  statue  of, 
at  Cnidus,  492. 


rMDEX. 


561 


A-pol'Io,  his  worship,  46;    oracles  of, 

47;    the   founder  of  colonies,  49; 

hymns  to,   found   at   Delphi,  476, 

n.  2. 
A-pol-lo'ni-a,  founded,  83. 
A-ra'tus,    general    of    the     Achaean 

league,  461. 
Ar-be'la,  battle  of,  446. 
Ar-ca'di-a,  geography  of,  3;   remains 

non-Dorian,       27;       villages      of, 

brought     into    dependence     upon 

Sparta,    72. 
Ar-ca'di-ans,    rustic    manners    of,   3; 

form  a  confederacy,  412. 
Ar'-ehi-da'mus,  king  of  Sparta,  279; 

at  Plata;a,  299,  300, 
Ar'-ehi-me'deg,    the     mathematician, 

537- 

Architecture,  in  the  Heroic  Age,  32; 
of  the  Mycenaean  Age,  471;  orders 
of,  472. 

Archon  E-pon'y-mus,  the  name,  104. 

Archons  at  Athens,  election  of  first, 
103,  n.  2.;  board  of,  104;  appeal 
from  decision  of,  112. 

A're-op'a-gus,  council  of  the,  105; 
early  constitution  of,  105,  107 ;  its 
censorial  duties,  112;  stripped  of 
its  authority,  243,  244. 

A'res,  42. 

Ares,  hill  of,  105,  n.  I. 

Argades,  112,  n. 

Ar'gi-nu'sae,  battle  of,  390 ;  condem- 
nation of  Athenian  generals  after, 
390. 

Argives,  aid  the  ^^^ginetans  in  their 
war  with  Athens,  160;  their  con- 
duct in  the  Persian  War,  176,  177. 

Ar'go-lis,  description  of,  5. 

Ar'go-nauts,  expedition  of  the,  18, 19. 

Ar'gos,  legend  respecting  citadel  of, 
16;  early  ascendency  of,  59-61; 
becomes  head  of  league,  in  Pelo- 
ponnesian  War,  328-333;  forms 
alliance  with  Athens,  329;  hopes 
of  leadership  ruined  at  Mantinea, 
?>?>^-m\  revolutions  at,  333,  n.; 
long  walls  at,  333,  n. ;  forms  an 
alliance  with  Athens,  461  B.C.,  245. 

Ar'is-tag'o-ras,  incites  the  lonians  to 
revolt,  141,  142;  seeks  aid  at 
Sparta  and  Athens,  142,  143. 


Ar'is-tar'chus,  the  astronomer,  538. 

Ar'is-tei'deg,  his  character,  161  ;  op- 
poses the  naval  policy  of  Themis- 
tocles,  161;  is  ostracized,  161,  162; 
joins  the  Greeks  at  Salamis,  201; 
in  the  battle,  204;  his  answer  to 
Mardonius,  212;  at  Plataea,  223; 
is  chosen  commander  of  the  Ionian 
fleet  in  place  of  Pausanias,  232; 
president  of  the  Delian  League, 
232,  233;  his  death,  236. 

A-ris'ti-on,  stele  of,  486. 

A-ris'to-de'mus,  king  of  Messenia,  70. 

Aristodemus,  the  Spartan  coward, 
188. 

A-ris'to-gei'ton,  the  Athenian  tyran- 
nicide, 118,  119. 

Ar'is-toph'a-neg,  comic  poet,  511. 

Ar'is-tot'le,  on  the  city-state,  36;  life 
and  works,  531. 

Ar'rhi-dae'us,  456,  n.  I. 

Art,  in  the  Heroic  Age,  32;  promise 
of  early  Greek  art,  58. 

Ar'ta-ba'nus,  opposes  the  designs  of 
Xerxes,  165. 

Ar'ta-ba'zus,  escorts  Xerxes  to  the 
Hellespont,  207;  in  Chalcidice, 
210;  treachery  of,  at  Plataea,  220, 
n.  I. 

Ar'ta-pher'nes,  Persian  satrap,  offers 
the  Athenians  an  alliance,  125; 
suppresses  the  Ionian  revolt,  144- 
147;  is  superseded  by  Mardonius, 
148;  leads  second  expedition 
against  Greece,  152. 

Ar'te-mis,  goddess,  42;  temple  of,  at 
Ephesus,  474. 

Ar'te-mis'i-a,  queen  of  Halicarnassus, 
in  the  train  of  Xerxes,  171 ;  at 
Salamis,  203. 

Ar'te-mis'i-um,  Greek  fleet  stationed 
at,  182;  naval  battle  of,  1 88-1 91. 

Asia  Minor,  migrations  to,  28,  29. 

A-so'pus,  river,  216. 

As-pa'si-a,  257,  n.,  545. 

As'si-na'rus,  river,  370. 

At-a-lan'te,  islet,  285. 

A-the'na,  goddess,  42;  her  worship, 
43,  44;  originally  a  nature  deity, 
43,  n.  3. 

Ath'e-nag'o-ras,  Syracusan  states- 
man, 346. 


562 


INDEX. 


A-the'na  Par'the-nos,  statue  of,  by 
Pheidias,  489. 

Athena  Po'li-as,  266. 

Athena  Prom'a-ehos,  statue  of,  at 
Athens,  266. 

Athenian  constitution,  history  of, 
before  the  Persian  War,  101-126; 
under  the  kings,  102-104;  trans- 
formed into  anohgarchy,  103,  104; 
at  close  of  seventh  century,  104,105 ; 
reforms  of  Draco,  107,  108;  the 
Solonian  reforms,  111-113;  under 
Peisistratus,  116;  the  Cleisthenean 
reforms,  121-124. 

Athenian  empire,  outgrowth  of  the 
Delian  League,  strength  and  weak- 
ness of,  266-269. 

Athenians,  the,  their  part  in  the 
burning  of  Sardis,  143;  throw  Per- 
sian heralds  into  the  Barathron, 
150;  quarrel  with  the  /Eginetans, 
150-152;  war  with  yEginetans, 
159,  160;  form  a  navy  in  /Egine- 
tan  war,  162;  at  Plataea,  217,  219, 
222;  in  Egypt,  249;  Galton's  re- 
marks on,  267,  n.;  form  alliance 
with  Corcyraeans,  274;  set  aside  a 
reserve  in  Peloponnesian  War,  285; 
measures  of,  after  the  Sicilian  dis- 
aster, 374;  their  losses  in  Sicily, 
374,  375;  impose  custom  duties 
upon  their  allies,  376;  use  the  Peri- 
clean  reserve,  376. 

A-then'o-do'rus,  496. 

Athens,  relation  of,  to  villages  and 
towns  of  Attica,  36;  history  of,  up 
to  the  Persian  Wars,  101-126;  his- 
tory of,  under  kings,  102-104; 
under  Theseus,  102,  103;  mon- 
archy transformed  into  an  oligarchy, 
103,  104;  classes  at,  105,  106; 
struggle  with  Megara  for  Salamis, 
108,  109;  property  classes  at,  iii, 
notes  I  and  2;  parties  at,  115;  the 
classes  enlarged  byCleisthenes,  121, 
n.  2;  abandoned  by  Athenians, 
194-196;  burned  by  the  Persians, 
196,197;  destroyed  a  second  time, 
by  Mardonius,  215;  rebuilding  of, 
after  the  Persian  Wars,  227-229; 
captures  .Elgina,  246;  constructs 
the  Long  Walls,  246;   in  the  Peri- 


clean  Age,  254-269;  salaried  of- 
fices at,  262,  n.  ;  plague  at,  289, 
290;  forms  alliance  with  Argos, 
329;  after  the  disaster  before  Syra- 
cuse, 372-376;  conspiracy  of  the 
Four  Hundred  at,  385;  their  fall 
(404  B.C.),  392;  Thirty  Tyrants  at, 
397;   her  new  confederacy,  407. 

A'thos,  Mount,  destruction  of  Persian 
fleet  at,  150;  canal  at,  cut  by 
Xerxes,  166. 

A-tos'sa,  mother  of  Xerxes.  164. 

At'ta-lus  IlL,  464,  n.  2. 

At'ti-ca,  physical  features  of,  3;  cli- 
mate of,  9;  silver  mines  at  Laurium, 
10;  consolidation  of  cantons,  by 
Theseus,  18;  the  territory  of 
Athens,  36;  the  original  tribes  of, 
1 1 2,  n.  ;  ethnic  elements  of  its  pop- 
ulation, loi ;  consolidation  of  the 
villages  of,  102,  103;  the  four  so- 
called  Attic  tribes,  112,  n.  i;  ten 
new  Attic  tribes  formed  by  Cleis- 
thenes,  121 ;  ravaged  by  the  Pelo- 
ponnesians  (431  B.C.),  284;  in  430 
B.C.,  289. 

Au'ge-as,  17. 

Au'lis,  22. 

Bactria,  conquest    of  by  Alexander, 
i        448;     Hellenic    kingdom   of,  449, 
I        n.  I. 
j    Bar'a-thron,  the,  150. 

Ba'tis,  defender  of  Gaza  against  Alex- 
1        ander,  446. 

Beluchistan  (bel-00-chis-tan'),  451. 

Be'ma,  the  Athenian,  121,  n.  3. 

Beni-Hassan  (ba'nee-has'san),  473. 

Be-ro'sus,  519. 

Bes'sus,  Persian  general,  448, 449. 

Boe-o'ti-a,  geography  of,  3;  origin  of 
name,  26,  n. ;  made  dependent  on 
Athens,  248;  oligarchical  con- 
spiracy in,  during  Peloponnesian 
War,  317,  318;  invasion  of,  by 
Athenians  (424  B.C.),  318. 

Boeotian  league,  dissolved  by  Sparta, 
405;    its  revival,  407. 

Boeotians,  character  of,  3;  join  the 
Persians,  194. 

Bo'ges,  Persian  governor,  234. 

Bos'po-rus,  the,  colonies  on,  81. 


INDEX. 


563 


Boule,  at  Athens  (see  Council  of  Are- 
opagtii). 

Bras'i-das,  Spartan  general,  319;  plan 
of  his  campaign  against  Athens, 
319-322;  in  Thrace,  322-325;  his 
death,  325. 

Bu-ceph'a-la,  founded,  450. 

By-zan'ti-uni,  foundation  of,  81 ;  se- 
cedes from  the  Athenian  empire, 
257,  258;  captured  by  Alcibiades, 
387 ;  besieged  by  Philip  of  Mace- 
don,  435. 

Cad-me'a,  representative  of  a  prehis- 
toric civilization,  26,  n. 

Cad'mus,  founder  of  Thebes,  16. 

Cal'^has,  47,  n,  i. 

Cal'li-as,  Peace  of,  250,  n. 

Cal'li-crat'i-das,  Spartan  admiral,  390. 

Cal-lim'a-€hus,  473. 

Cal-lix'e-nus,  Athenian  senator,  390. 

Cam'a-ri'na,  debate  at,  at  time  of  Sicil- 
ian Expedition,  354-357. 

Cam-bu'ni-an  Mountains,  5. 

Cam-by'se§,  reign  of,  133-135- 

Carians,  the,  join  the  Ionian  revolt, 
I44._ 

Car-ma'ni-a,  451. 

Cap'pa-do'ci-a,  131. 

Car'a-cal'la,  Roman  emperor,  496, 
n.   I. 

Carthage,  Phoenician  colony,  78. 

Carthage,  at  the  time  of  the  Persian 
Wars,  139. 

Carthaginians,  their  aid  sought  by  the 
Egest?eans,  377;  ravage  Sicily,  419. 

Car'y-at'i-de§,  the  porch  of,  266. 

Ca-rys'tus,  captured  by  Persians,  152. 

Cas-san'der,  457,  and  n.  2. 

Cat'a-na,    founded,    86;     mentioned, 

35O'  352. 
Cau'ca-sus,    the,    gold    in,  82;    slave 

trade  of,  82. 
Ca-ys'ter,  river,  129. 
(j^e-cro'pi-a,   16;    nucleus  of  Athens, 

102. 
(^e'crops,  16. 
Cen'taurs,  the,  43,  n. 
Ceph'al-le'ni-a,  island,  joins  Athenian 

alliance,  285. 
Ce-phi'sus,  stream,  7. 
Cer'be-rus,  17,  43,  n. 


■Gha'bri-as,    Athenian    general,   432, 

n.  2. 
-Gha^r'o-ne'a,  battle   of,  435;    results 

of.  437- 

■Ghal'ce-don,  founded,  81. 

-Ghal-9id'i-9e,  the  name,  80;  products 
of,  80;  relation  to  Macedonia  of 
colonies  in,  80;  in  the  Pelopon- 
nesian  War,  324. 

■Ghal'gis,  colonies  of,  on  Macedon- 
ian shore,  80;  conquered  by 
Athenians,  and  made  into  a  cle- 
ruchy,  125,  126. 

■€ha'res,  sculptor,  495. 

■Ghar'i-cles,  Athenian  general,  363. 

-Gha-rib'dis,43,  n. 

-Ghi'os,  island,  9;  colonized  by  loni- 
ans,  29;  reduced  by  Persians,  133; 
revolts  from  Athens,  379;  recon- 
quered, 381. 

■Gho-ra'gus,  the,  548. 


j    (^i'mon,  Peace  of,  250, 


Cimon,  son  of  Miltiades,  pays  his 
father's  fine,  159;  commander  of 
the  Athenian  fleet,  233,  234;  capt- 
ures Eion,  234;  at  Scyros,  234;  at 
the  Eurymedon,  235,  236;  trans- 
ports to  Athens  the  relics  of  The- 
seus, 235;  his  recall,  239;  his 
ostracism,  243;  his  death  and 
character,  250;  rival  of  Pericles, 
262,  n. 

Cirr^ha,  destroyed  by  Amphictyons, 
54. 

Cis'si-ans,  the,  171,  n. 

Ci-thae'ron,  Mount,  6. 

City-state,  the,  35-38;  character  of, 
35-37;  origin  of,  37,38;  early  con- 
stitution of,  39;  influence  of,  upon 
Greek  history  and  culture,  39,  40. 

Cla-zom'e-nae,  revolts  from  Athens, 
380;  reconquered,  381. 

Cle-ar'€hus,  a  general  of  the  Ten 
Thousand,  399. 

Cleis'the-ne§,  tyrant  of  Corinth,  94, 
n.  3. 

Cleistheneg,  leader  of  the  commons 
at  Athens,  120,  121 ;  constitution 
of,  121-124. 

Cle-om'bro^tus,  Spartan  king,  409. 

Cle-om'e-ne§  I.,  king  of  Sparta,  de- 
stroys 6cxx)  Argives,  73;  aids  Isag- 


564 


INDEX. 


oras  at  Athens  in  driving  the  party 
ofCleisthenes  into  exile,  I20;  driven 
out  of  Athens,  1 20;  attempts  to 
reinstate  Hippias  at  Athens,  124- 
126;  rejects  proposal  of  Aristagoras, 
142;  at  /Egina,  151 ;  bribes  the 
oracle  at  Delphi,  159,  n.;  his 
treason  and  madness,  159,  n. ; 
import  of  his  reign,  159,  n.;  III., 
46,  n.  2. 

Cleomenic  War,  460,  n.  2. 

Cle'on,  his  speech  in  regard  to  the 
Mytilenaeans,  296;  in  the  affair  at 
Sphacteria,  311-314;  in  Thrace. 
325;  his  death,  325. 

Cle'o-pa'tra,  468. 

Cle'ru-chies,  nature  of,  77,  n. ;  Athe- 
nian, in  Euboea,  252;  established 
by  Pericles,  260;  settlement  formed 
in  Lesbos,  299,  n.;  those  in  Euboea 
broken  up  by  Lysander,  392. 

Cli'tus,     murdered     by      Alexander, 

449- 
Clyt'em-nes'tra,  wife  of  Agamemnon, 

25- 

Cni'dus,  sea-fight  of,  403,  n.  3, 

Co-cy'tus,  river,  7. 

Co'drus,  king  of  Athens,  102,  103. 

Colonies,  Greek,  relation  of,  to  the 
mother  city,  76,  77;  cleruchies,  77, 
n.;  in  Chalcidice,  80,  81;  on  the 
Hellespont,  the  Propontis,  and  the 
Bosporus,  81;  in  the  Euxine  region, 
82,  83;  on  the  Ionian  islands,  83; 
in  Southern  Italy,  84,  85 ;  in  vSicily 
and  Southern  Gaul,  85,  86;  in 
North  Africa  and  Egypt,  86,  87; 
life  in,  87,  88;  place  of,  in  Grecian 
history,  88,  89. 

Colossus  of  Rhodes,  495. 

Co'non,  Athenian  general,  389;  at 
battle  of  Arginusae,  390. 

Copias,  Lake,  8. 

Cor-cy'ra,  island,  9. 

Cor^yra,  city,  founded,  83;  quarrel 
with  Corinth,  270-275;  forms  alli- 
ance with  Athens,  274;  sedition 
at  (427  B.C.),  306;  end  of  the  revo- 
lution, 316. 

Corcyraeans,  their  course  in  the 
Persian  War,  179. 

Corinth,    forms    early   alliance   with 


Sparta,    73;     colonies    of,    83,    n.; 

under     the     Cypselidse,    92,    94 ; 

Greek  council  at,  in  481  B.C.,  176; 

opposes    Athenian    advance,    245, 

246;    quarrel    with    Corcyra,   270- 

275;     congress    convened    at,    by 

Philip  of  Macedon,  437;  destroyed 

by  the  Romans,  462. 
Corinth,  battle  of  (394  B.C.),  404. 
Corinthia,  description  of,  3. 
Corinthian  War,  403. 
Corinthians,  aid  the  Athenians  in  the. 

/Eginetan  war,  160. 
Co-roe'bus,  victor  at  Olympia,  51. 
Cor'o-ne'a,  battle  of  (394  B.C.),  403, 

n.  3. 
Cos,  settled  by  Dorians,  29. 
Council  of  Four  Hundred,  remodelled 

by  Cleisthenes,  122. 
Cre'on,  king  of  Thebes,  20. 
Cretans,  at  the  time  of  Persian  Wars, 

Crete,  island,  9 ;  colonized  by  Dorians, 

29-  , 

Cre-mi'sus,  river,  426;  defeat  of  Car- 
thaginians at,  426. 
-Gris'sa,  destroyed   by  Amphictyons, 

54. 

Crit'i-as,  Athenian  oligarch,  397. 

Crce'sus,  king  of  Lydia,  129-132; 
interview  with  Solon,  114;  consults 
oracle  at  Delphi,  130,  131 ;  de- 
feated by  Cyrus,  131;  on  the  pyre, 
131 ;  at  the  Persian  court,  132. 

Cro'ton,  founded,  85. 

Cryp'ti-a,  the,  69. 


Cu'mce,  oracle  at,  85. 


Cyrus 


Cu-nax'a,   battle    of,    between 

and  Artaxerxes,  399. 
Cyanean  Rocks,  250. 
(^y-ax'a-re§,  king  of  the  Medes,  128. 
Cyb'e-le,  worship  of,  41;   her  temple 

at  Sardis,  143. 
(^yc'la-de§,  the,  8;   settled  by  lonians, 
"  29. 

Cy'clops,  the  43,  n. 
(^y'lon,  rebellion  of,   106,   107;    date 

of,  106,  n. 
gyn'ics,  the,  533. 

Cyn'os-ceph'a-lse,  battle  of,  462,  n.  i. 
Cyn'os-se'ma,  386,  n.  i. 
Cy-nu'ri-a,  conquered  by  Sparta,  72, 


tNDEX. 


S65 


Cy'prus,  copper  in,  lo  ;  conquered  by 
Cambyses,  134;  in  the  Ionian  re- 
volt, 144;  cities  in,  liberated  by 
Pausanias,  230. 

Cyp-sel'i-da?,  the,  93,  n. 

Cyp'se-lus,  tyrant  of  Corinth,  92,  93 ; 
origin  of  name,  94,  n.  I. 

Cyr'e-na'i-ca,  86. 

^y-re'ne,  founded,  86. 

Cy'ro-poe-di'a,  the,  of  Xenophon,  515. 

(^yrus  the  Great,  129-133;  conquers 
Croesus,  131-132;  reduced  to  sub- 
mission   the   Asiatic   Greek   cities, 

132,  133- 
Cyrus  the  Younger,  398-400. 
Cythera  (si-thee'ra),  island,  9;  seized 

by  the  Athenians,  317. 
Cyz'i-cus,  colony  of  Miletus,  81 ;  naval 

fight  at,  387. 

Daed'a-lus,  179,  n.  2,  483. 

Da-mas'i-as,  archon,  115. 

Dam'o-cle§,  story  of,  424. 

Dan'a-us,  16. 

Da-ri^us  I.,  reign  of,  135-139;  re- 
forms Persian  system  of  govern- 
ment, 135,  136;  his  conquests  in 
India,  136;  his  Scythian  expedi- 
tion, 137-139;  his  first  expedition 
against  Greece,  149,  150;  demands 
of  the  Greeks  earth  and  water, 
150;  his  second  expedition  against 
Greece,  152;  plans  a  third  expedi- 
tion against  Greece,  164;  his  death, 
164. 

Darius  II.,  demands  of  his  satraps  the 
tribute  due  from  the  Asian  Greek 
cities,  377. 

Darius  III.,  on  the  field  of  Arbela, 
447;   his  flight  and  death,  448. 

Da'tis,  Persian  general,  152. 

Decarchies,  established  by  Sparta,  396. 

De^'e-le'a,  gives  name  to  the  Dece- 
lean  War,  282,  n. ;  its  occupation 
urged  on  the  Spartans  by  Alcibi- 
ades,  358;  fortified  by  the  Spar- 
tans, 362;  efiFects  upon  Athens  of 
its  occupation  by  the  Spartans,  373. 

Decelean  War,  the,  372;  why  so- 
called,  377. 

Delian  League  (see  Delos,  confederacy 
of). 


De'h-um,  battle  of,  317-319. 

De'los,  island,  8;  purified  by  Peisis- 
tratus,  117;  made  trade  port  by  the 
Romans,  456,  n.  2. 

De'los,  confederacy  of,  its  formation, 
232,  233;  transformed  into  an  em- 
pire by  the  Athenians,  240,  241. 

Delphi,  seat  of  oracle  of  Apollo,  2,  6; 
the  oracle  at,  47-50;  attempt  of 
Persians  to  plunder  temple  at,  191- 
193;  Gauls  attempt  to  rob,  459  ; 
temple  at,  rebuilt  by  Alcmaeonidse, 
476;  its  treasure,  476 ;  excavations 
at,  476,  n.  2. 

Delphian  Oracle,  the,  46-50;  ratifier 
of  political  constitutions,  49;  influ- 
ence on  Hellenic  unity,  49;  on 
Greek  morality,  49;  its  services  to 
Greek  colonization,  49,  79;  rela- 
tion to  the  legislation  of  Lycurgus, 
63;  consulted  by  Croesus,  130, 
131;  bribed  by  Cleomenes,  159, 
n. ;  consulted  by  the  Argives,  177; 
consulted  by  the  Cretans,  179;  its 
attitude  in  the  Persian  W^ar,  1 80; 
message  to  the  Athenians  at  the 
time  of  the  Persian  War,  195;  oracle 
given  Spartans  at  beginning  of  Pelo- 
ponnesian  War,  279 ;  oracle  respect- 
ing the  plague  at  Athens,  284, 
290. 

Dem'a-ra'tus,  Spartan  king,  opposes 
the  policy  of  Cleomenes,  125;  de- 
posed, 151;  goes  to  Susa,  151. 

Deme  (dem),  the  Attic,  121. 

De'me-ter,  cult  of,  44. 

De-me'tri-us  Po'li-or-ce'tes,  456,  n.  2. 

De-moc'ri-tus,_525. 

De-mos'the-nes,  Athenian  admiral, 
seizes  Pylos,  308,  309;  carries  rein- 
forcements toNicias,  in  Sicily,  363; 
his  execution,  370. 

Demosthenes,  the  orator,  his  Olyn- 
thiacs,  432-434;  his  Philippics, 
433;  his  mission  to  Thebes,  436; 
his  death,  459;  anecdotes  of,  516; 
his  oration  on  the  crown,  517. 

Der-cyl'li-das,  403,  n.  i. 

Deu-ca'li-on,  6,  12,  n. 

Di-cas'te-ries,  Athenian,  in  time  of 
Solon,  III;  description  of,  262, 263; 
method  of  fixing  penalty,  401,  n. 


566 


INDEX. 


Dicastica,  the,  261,  n. 

Di'o-do'rus  Sic'u-lus,  519. 

Di-od'o-tus,  297. 

Di-og'e-neg,  the  Cynic,  533. 

Di'on,   counsellor   of  Dionysius    II., 

424,  425. 
Di'o-nys'i-a,  the,  44;   relation  to  the 

Athenian  drama,  44. 
Di'o-nys'i-us  I.,  tyrant    of   Syracuse, 

his  reign,  420-424. 
Dionysius     II.     the    Younger,    424- 

426. 
Di'o-ny'sus,  43,  n. ;    cult  of,  brought 

into    Greece,    41;    spread  of   cult, 

44;   theatre  of,  at  Athens,  481. 
Dis-cob'o-lus,  the,  488. 
Divination  among  the  Greeks,  47. 
Do-do'na,  oracle  at,  47;   excavations, 

at,  47,  n.  2. 
DodoneanZeus,  god  of  Pelasgians,  12. 
Dor'cis,  Spartan  general,  232. 
Dorian    Invasion,  26-28;    comments 

on  the  legend  of,  27,  28. 
Dorians,   characteristics  of,  13;    con- 
quer the  Peloponnesus,  26-28. 
Do'ris,  origin  of  name,  26,  n.;    calls 

on  Sparta  for  help,  247. 
Do-ris'cus,  plain  of,  170;   review  here 

of  Persian  army,  171,  172. 
Do'rus,  12,  n. 

Draco,  legislation  of,  107,  108. 
Dragon,  the,  43,  n. 
Drama,  the    Attic,   505-512;     origin 

of,    506;    leading  ideas    of  Greek 

tragedy,  507. 
Drep'a-na,  421. 
Dry'ads,  the,  43,  n. 
Dyr-ra'€hi-um,  271,  n.  i. 

Ec-bat'a-na,  448. 

Ec-cle'si-a,  at  Athens,  in  earliest 
times,  105;  increase  of  its  author- 
ity by  Draco,  107,  108;  Thetes  ad- 
mitted to,  by  Solon,  iii;  place  of 
meeting,  121,  n.  3. 

Ecclesiasticon,  the,  261,  n. 

Education,  at  Sparta,  68;  among  the 
Greeks  in  general,  542-544. 

E-ges'ta,  asks  aid  of  Athens,  336;  of 
the  Carthaginians,  419. 

Egestaeans,  their  deceit  discovered, 
349. 


Egypt,  Greek  settlements  in,  86,  87; 
conquest  of,  by  Cambyses,  133, 
134;  Athenian  disaster  in,  248, 
249. 

E-i'on,  capture  of,  by  Cimon,  234. 

El-a-te'a,  436. 

Eleans,  assume  the  guardianship  of 
the  Olympian  shrine,  73,  74;  secede 
from   Lacedaemonian    league,  329. 

El'eu-sin'i-a,  festival  of  the,  45, 

El'eu-sin'i-an  Mysteries,  the,  44-46; 
mimicked  by  Alcibiades,  343 ;  cel- 
ebration of,  at  time  of  the  Pelopon- 
nesian  War,  388. 

E-leu'sis,  seat  of  the  Eleusinian  Mys- 
teries, 44. 

Elgin  (el'g'in),  Lord,  479,  n.  3. 

E'lis,  description  of,  5. 

Elysian  (e-lizh'an)  Fields,  the,  56. 

Em-ped'o-cles,  525. 

E-pam'i-non'das,  revives  the  Boeotian 
league,  407;  at  the  congress  of 
371  B.C.  in  Sparta,  408;  at  Leuc- 
tra,  409;  ravages  Laconia,  412;  in 
Arcadia,4i3;  his  second  and  third 
expeditions  into  the  Peloponnesus, 
415,  n.  I;  fourth  expedition,  416; 
his  death,  417. 

Eph'e-sus,  early  Ionian  colony,  29; 
temple  of  Artemis  at,  474. 

Eph'i-al'tes,  the  Malian  traitor,  186. 

Eph'i-al'tes,  leader  of  attack  upon 
the  Areopagus,  244;  his  assassina- 
tion, 244. 

Eph'ors,  the,  at  Sparta,  65,  66. 

Epicureanism,  534. 

Ep'i-cu'rus,  534. 

Ep'i-dam'nus,  established,  2>2);  Cor- 
inth and  Corcyra  quarrel  respect- 
ing, 271. 

Ep'i-dau'rus,  conquered  by  Perian- 
der,  93. 

E-pig'o-ni,  war  of  the,  21,  n. 

Ep'i-men'i-deg,  his  visit  to  Athens, 
109,  n.  2. 

E-pip'o-loe,  364. 

E-pi'rus,  geography  of,  2. 

Er'a-tos'the-ne§,  geographer,  538. 

Er'ech-the'um,  the,  266. 

E-re'tri-a,  aids  the  Ionian  rebels,  143; 
destroyed  by  the  Persians,  152, 
^53- 


INDEX. 


567 


Erinnyes  (^-rin'i-ez),  the,  43,  n. 

E'ros,  43,  n. 

Er'y-thrai,  revolts  from  Athens,  380. 

E-te'o-cles,  20. 

Eu-boe'a,  island,  9;  copper  in,  lo; 
revolt  in,  suppressed  by  Pericles, 
252;  Athenian  cleruchies  estab- 
lished in,  252;  cities  of,  join  the 
Spartan  confederacy,  253;  revolts 
from  Athens,  385. 

Euboean  scales  and  measures,  60,  n. ; 
adopted  by  Solon,  1 10. 

Euchidas,  Plataean  runner,  222. 

Eu'clid,  the  mathematician,  537. 

Eu'me-neg  II.,  king  of  Pergamus, 
464,  n.  2. 

Eumenides  (u-men'i-dez),  the,  43,  n. 

Eu'pa-trids,  the,  at  Athens,  38,  105. 

Eu-phe'mus,  Athenian  envoy,  355. 

Eu-rip'i-deg,  tragic  poet,  510. 

Eu-ro'tas,  valley  of  the,  561;  the 
river,  7. 

Eu'ry-bi'a-des,  Spartan  king,  at  Arte- 
misium,  189;  at  Salamis,  197,  198, 
199;   in  the  council  at  Andros,  206. 

Eu-rym'e-don,  Athenian  commander, 
308,  309;  sent  to  Sicily,  361. 

Eurymedon,  battle  of  the,  235,  236. 

Eu'ry-tus,  Spartan  soldier,  188. 

Euxine  Sea  (uk'sin),  the  colonies  on, 
82,  83;  trade  of,  82. 

P'arnese  Bull,  the,  496,  n.  i. 

Fates,  the,  43,  n. 

Flam'i-ni'nus,  Roman  consul,  pro- 
claims freedom  of  the  Greek  cities, 
462,  n.  I. 

Four  Hundred,  the,  conspiracy  of,  at 
Athens,  381. 

Four  Hundred  and  One,  council  of 
the,  108;  reorganized  by  Solon, 
112. 

Five  Hundred,  council  of,  origin  of, 

122. 

Friendship,  among  the  Greeks,  546. 
Funeral  oration  of  Pericles,  286-289. 

Galton,  quoted,  267,  n. 
Gar-ga'pi-a,  fountain,  218,  n. 
Gauls,  their  invasion  of  Greece,  459. 
Gaza,   445;    reduced    by   Alexander, 
4,45- 


Ge-dro'si-a,  Alexander  in,  451. 

Ge'lo,  tyrant  of  Syracuse,  177,  178; 
his  reply  to  the  envoys  of  the 
Greek  cities  at  the  time  of  the 
great  invasion,  178,  179. 

Genos,  the,  among  the  Greeks,  37, 
n.  1,38. 

Ge-rou'si-a,  the,  65. 

Glau-co'pis,  epithet  of  Athena,  44,  n. 

Glau'cus,  story  of,  49,  50;  recited  by 
the  Spartan  Leotychides  to  the 
Athenians,  159. 

Go-ma'tes  (see  Smerdis). 

Gordian  knot,  443. 

Gor'di-um,  443. 

Gor'di-us,  king  of  Phrygia,  443. 

Gor'gi-as, 

Gor'gons,  the,  43,  n. 

Gra-ni'cus,  battle  of,  443. 

Grecian  games,  influence  of,  52,  53. 

Greece,  home  land  of  the  Hellenes, 
I;  divisions  of,  1-5;  mountains  of, 
5,  6;  rivers  and  lakes  of,  6-8; 
islands  round,  8,  9;  climate  and 
productions  of,  9,  10 ;  influence  of 
land  upon  the  people,  10,  ii; 
Oriental  settlers  in,  16. 

Greek  colonization,  age  of,  75-89 ; 
causes  of,  75,  76;  condition  of 
Mediterranean  shores  at  era  of,  78; 
promoted  by  Delphian  oracle,  79. 

Greeks,  genius  of,  14;  their  legends, 
15-29;  inheritance  of,  35-58;  re- 
ligion of,  40-56;  their  national 
games,  50-53;  athleticism  among, 
52,  n.;  their  language,  56;  their 
mythology,  57;  their  early  litera- 
ture, 57;  their  early  art,  58.  (See 
Hellenes.^ 

Gy-lip'pus,  Spartan  general,  sent  to 
Sicily,  358;  his  arrival  there,  359; 
effect  of  his  coming,  360. 

Gymnastic  art,  influence  upon  sculpt- 
ure, 483. 

Gym'no-pse-di'a,  Spartan  festival, 
410. 

Hades  (ha'dez),  43,  n. 

Hag'non,  founder  of  Amphipolis,  325. 

Ha'li-ar'tus,  194,  n.  i. 

Haliartus,  battle  of,  403,  n.  3. 

Hal'i-car-nas'sus,  Mausoleum  at,  480. 


568 


INDEX. 


Ha'lys,  river,  128;    crossed  by  Cyrus, 

131- 

Ham'a-dry'ads,  the,  43,  n. 

Hannibal,  Carthaginian  general, 
419. 

Har-mo'di-us,  the  Athenian  tyranni- 
cide, 118,  119;  statue  of,  carried 
off  by  Xerxes,  sent  back  by  Alex- 
ander, 447. 

Harmosts,  Spartan,  397. 

Harpies,  the,  43,  n. 

He'be,  43,  n. 

He'brus,  river,  170. 

Hector,  son  of  Priam,  23. 

Hel'en,  wife  of  Menelaus,  22. 

He-li-ce'a,  the,  262. 

Hel'las,  term  defined,  i. 

Herien,_i2,  n. 

Hel-le'nes,  or  Hel'lenes,  Greece 
proper  their  home  land,  i ;  influ- 
ence of  land  upon,  10,  1 1 ;  geneal- 
ogy of,  12,  13;  divisions  of,  12,  13; 
their  prehistoric  migrations,  13; 
their  relation  to  the  Italians,  14; 
genius  of,  14;  myths  and  legends 
of,  15-33;  receive  elements  of  cult- 
ure from  the  Orient,  16.  (See 
Greeks.^ 

Hel'les-pont,  the,  colonies  on,  81 ; 
bridged  by  Xerxes,  167,  168; 
crossed  by  Xerxes,  168,  169. 

Hel'i-con,  Mount,  6. 

He'lots,  the,  at  Sparta,  62;  massacre 
of,  by  Spartans,  61,  n.;  revolt  of, 
241,  242;  conduct  at  Sphacteria, 
312. 

He-phaes'ti-on,  453,  n. 

He-phses'tus,  42. 

He'ra,  42. 

Her'a-cleg,  twelve  labors  of,  17;  Mel- 
carth  the  original  of,  17;  ruler  in 
the  Peloponnesus,  26. 

Her'a-cli'diS,  return  of  the,  28. 

Her'a-cli'tus,  522. 

Her'mse,  mutilation  of,  at  Athens, 
342;  executions  in  connection  with 
this  outrage,  350. 

Her'me§,  42. 

Her-mi'o-ne,  459,  n. 

Her-moc'ra-te§,  his  speech  in  regard 
to  the  Athenian  Expedition,  345; 
his  character,  348;    advises  Syra- 


cusans  to  have  fewer  generals,  354; 

speech  at  Camarina,  354. 
Her'mus,  river,  129. 
He-rod'o-tus,  his  life,  513;    his   his- 
tory, 513. 
Heroic  Age,  society  in,  29-33;    form 

of  the  kingly  authority  in  the,  29- 

30;  slavery  in,  31. 
He-ros'tra-tus,  474. 
He'si-od,  503. 
Hesiodic  poems,  the,  503. 
Hes-per'i-de§,  the,  43,  n. 
Hes'ti-a,  42. 
He-tai'rifi,  the,  545. 
Hi'e-ro    I.,  tyrant  of  Syracuse,  345, 

n.;   n.,  428. 
Him'e-ra,  battle  of,  419. 
Himera,    Sicilian    city,  destroyed  by 

Carthaginians,  419. 
Hip-par'€hus,    Athenian    tyrant,    his 

assassination,  118,  119. 
Hipparehus,  astronomer,  539. 
Hippeis,  III,  n.  I. 
Hip'pi-as,  driven  from  Athens,  118- 

120;    goes  to    Susa,    126;     guides 

the  Persians  to  Marathon,  153. 
Hip-poc'ra-te§,  Athenian  general,  318, 

319- 

Hippocrateg,  physician,  539. 

Hip-po'nax,  poet,  544. 

Hissarlik,  excavations  at,  24,  n. 

His'ti-ae'us,  tyrant  of  Miletus,  serves 
Darius  in  the  matter  of  the  bridge 
across  the  Danube,  138;  accompa- 
nies Darius  to  Susa,  138;  sends 
letter  to  Aristagoras,  141,  142. 

Hittites,  the,  17. 

Homer,  502. 

Homeric  poems,  edited  by  Peisistra- 
tus,  118;  date  and  authorship  of, 
501. 

Ho-mer'i-dse,  the,  9. 

Hopletes,  112,  n. 

Hy-dar'nes,  satrap,  186. 

Hy-met'tus,  Mount,  6. 

Hy-pa'ti-a,  536. 

Hy-per'bo-lus,  ostracism  of,  124, 
n.  I. 

Hy-per'i-des,  Athenian  orator,  459, 
n.  3. 

Hyr-ca'ni-ans,  the,  171,  n. 

Hys-tas'pe§,  135. 


INDEX. 


569 


I'a-pyg'i-a^  promontory  of,  348. 

Ic-ti'nus,  designer  of  the  Parthenon, 
266. 

I-ol'-eos,  port  of  Thessaly,  2. 

I'on,  12,  n. 

Ionia,  cities  of,  subjected  by  Lydian 
kings,  129,  130;  reduced  by  Cyrus, 
132,  133;  at  the  end  of  the  Ionian 
revolt,  147;  reconstruction  of,  by 
Artaphernes,  148;  liberated  by  the 
battle  of  Mycale,  225. 

Ionian  Islands,  the,  9. 

lonians,  characteristics  of,  13;  settle- 
ments of,  in  Asia  Minor,  29;  at 
the  Danube  bridge,  138;  revolt  of, 
141-147.     (See  Ionia.) 

Iliad,  subject  of  the,  23;  as  a  reflec- 
tion of  society  in  the  Heroic  Age, 
29-33.     i^&^  Homeric  poems.) 

Il'i-os  (see  Troy). 

I-lis'sus,  stream,  7. 

Im'bros,  subjugated  by  the  Persians, 

139- 
In'a-rus,  249,  n. 
India,  conquests  in,  by  Darius,  136; 

by  Alexander,  449. 
Indus  River,  Alexander  upon,  450. 
Iran  (e'ran),  127. 
I'ris,  43,  n. 
I-sae'us,  orator,  516. 
I-sag'o-ras,  leader  of  nobles,  I20. 
Is-me'ne,  20. 
I-soc'ra-teg,  orator,  516. 
Is'sus,  battle  of,  444. 
Isthmian  games,  the,  52;   revived  by 

Periander,  94. 
Italy,  Greek  colonies  in,  84,  85. 
Ith'a-ca,  birthplace  of  Odysseus,  9. 
I-tho'me,   Mount,  stronghold  of  the 

Messenians,  70,  242. 

Jason,  prince  of  Thessaly,  19. 
Jason,  tyrant  of  Pherae,  415,  n.  2. 
Jealousy  of  the  gods,  doctrine  of,  54, 

55;   Artabanus  reminds  Xerxes  of, 

165. 
Jo-cas'ta,  20. 
Julian  the  Apostate,  536. 

Lag'e-dae'mon,  descriptive  epithet 
"hollow,"  5;  origin  of  name,  61, 
p,  I, 


La-co'ni-a,  geography  of,  5;  classes 
in,  62;  Spartans  complete  the  con- 
quest of,  69;  shores  ravaged  by 
Athenians,  285-291 ;  ravaged  by 
Epaminondas,  412;  invaded  a  sec- 
ond time  by  Thebans,  416. 

La'de,  battle  of,  146,  n. 

Laius  (la'yus),  king  of  Thebes,  19. 

Lam'a-€hus,  Athenian  general,  337. 

La'mi-an  War,  459. 

Lamp'sa-cus,  239. 

La-oc'o-on,  the,  495. 

La-ris'sa,  city  in  Thessaly,  165. 

Lau'ri-um,  silver  mines  at,  162;  reve- 
nue from,  used  by  the  Athenians 
for  building  a  navy,  162. 

Legends,  Greek,  character  of,  15. 

Ivcm'nos,  island,  9;  subjugated  by 
the  Persians,  139. 

Le-on'i-das,  king  of  Sparta,  at  Ther- 
mopylae, 184,  185,  186,  187. 

Le'on-ti'ni,  founded,  85;  in  Pelopon- 
nesian  War,  308;  the  Leontines 
expelled  from  their  city  by  the 
Syracusans,  337,  n. 

Le'o-ty€h'i-de§,  Spartan  king,  151; 
recites  the  tale  of  Glaucus  to 
the  Athenians,  159;  at  Mycale, 
224. 

Les'bos,  island,  9;  settled  by  Co- 
hans,   28;     reduced    by    Persians, 

Leu'cas,  founded,  83. 

Leuc'tra,  battle  of,  409;   moral  effect 

of,  410;   situation  in  Greece  after, 

418. 
Lil'y-bas'um,  421. 
Literature,  Greek,  500-515;   periods 

of,  501, 
Lo'cri,  founded,  85. 
Long  Walls,  at  Athens,  246,    n.   2; 

their  demolition  by  the    Pelopon- 

nesians,  394;   restoration  of,  404. 
Lucanians,  the,  422. 
Ly-ce'um,  the,  adorned  by  Peisistra- 

tus,  118. 
Lyc'i-as,  Athenian  orator,  at  Olym- 

pia,  424;   mentioned,  516. 
Ly(;'i-das,  Athenian  counsellor,  213. 
Ly-cur'gus,  legend  of,  63,  64. 
Lydia,  conquered  by  Cyrus,  129-132; 

the  country,  129;  the  people,  1 29,  n. 


570 


INDEX. 


Ly-san'der,  Spartan  general,  389; 
captures  Athenian  fleet  at  ^'Egos- 
potami,  391;  operations  of,  in  the 
.-Egean,  392;  effects  the  reduction 
of  Athens,  393;  sets  up  oligarchi- 
cal rule  in  the  Ionian  cities,  397; 
death  of^  403,  n.  3. 

Ly-sic'ra-tes,  Monument  of,  482. 

Ly-sim'a-chus,  457,  459. 

Ly-sip'pus,  sculptor,  492. 

Mac'ca-bees,  the,  465. 

Macedonia,  submits  to  Darius,  138, 
139;  under  Philip  II.,  429-439; 
its  rulers,  429;  its  population,  429; 
after  Alexander's  death,  458. 

Ma'gi,  the,  134. 

Ma'gi-an-ism,  134,  135. 

Mag-ne'si-a,  239. 

Magna  Gra^cia,  the  name,  84;  colo- 
nies of,  84,  85;  cities  of,  con- 
quered by  Dionysius  I.  of  Syra- 
cuse, 422. 

Man'e-tho,  519. 

Man'ti-ne'a,  withdraws  from  the  Pelo- 
ponnesian  league,  329;  broken  up 
into  villages  by  the  Spartans,  405 ; 
its  restoration,  411. 

Mantinea,  battle  of  (418  B.C.),  331; 
battle  of  (362  B.C.),  416. 

Mar'a-thon,  battle  of,  153-157;  re- 
sults of,  158. 

Mar-do'ni-us,  supersedes  Artaphernes, 
148;  deposes  the  tyrants  in  the 
cities  of  Ionia,  149;  expedition 
against  Eretria  and  Athens,  149, 
150;  in  Thrace,  150;  his  ambition 
to  be  satrap  of  Greece,  165;  ad- 
vice to  Xerxes  at  Salamis,  205; 
left  behind  by  Xerxes  in  Greece, 
207;  campaign  of,  210-226;  at- 
tempts to  bribe  the  Athenians, 
210-212;  marches  into  Attica, 
212,  213;  renews  to  the  Athenians 
offers  of  alliance,  213;  ravages 
Attica,  215;  withdraws  into  Boeo- 
tia,  215,  216;   his  death,  219. 

Masistius,  Persian  commander,  216. 

Mas-sa'li-a,  founded,  86. 

Mau-so'lus,  king  of  Caria,  480. 

Mausoleum,  at  Halicarnassus,  480. 

Meandrius,  tyrant  of  Samos,  137. 


Medes,  term  applied  by  Greeks  to  the 
Persians,  180,  n.      (See  Persians.) 

Me'don,  successor  of  Codrus,  103,  n.  2. 

Meg-a-ba'zus,  Persian  general,  138. 

Meg'a-lop'o-lis,  founding  of,  412, 

Meg'a-ra,  struggle  with  Athens  for 
Salamis,  108,  109;  its  long  walls, 
246,  n.  I ;  joins  Spartan  confeder- 
acy, 253  ;  excluded  from  Attic 
ports,  277. 

Meg'a-ris,  invaded  by  Mardonius  in 
the  Persian  War,  215. 

Mel'carth,  Syrian  sun-god,  17. 

Me-le'si-as,  256,  n.  2. 

Me'los,  ravaged  by  the  Athenians, 
308,  n.;  taken  possession  of,  by 
the  Athenians,  333-335;  Melian 
exiles  restored  by  Lysander,  392. 

Me-nan'der,  512. 

Men'de,  revolts  from  Athens,  324. 

Men'e-la'us,  16. 

Me-nes'theus,  leader  in  Trojan  War, 
178,  n. 

Me-sem'bri-a,  146. 

Mes-se'ne  (Attic  form  of  Massana), 

349,  350- 

Messene,  founding  of,  by  Epaminon- 
das,  413. 

Mes-se'ni-a,  its  physical  characteris- 
tics, 5;  Spartan  conquest  of,  69-71. 

Mes-se'ni-an  wars.  First  and  vSecond, 
69-71;  Third,  241-243. 

Messenians,  liberation  of,  by  Epam- 
inondas,  413. 

Me-thym'na,  Lesbian  town,  292. 

Mi-le'tus,  early  Ionian  colony,  29; 
colonies  of,  in  Euxine  region,  83; 
under  the  tyrant  Aristagoras,  141, 
142;  fall  of,  145,  146;  revolts  from 
Athens,_  380. 

Mil-ti'a-des,  ruler  in  the  Thracian 
Chersonese,  138. 

Miltiadeg,  commands  at  Marathon, 
153,  154,  155'  156,  157;  his  dis- 
grace and  death,  158,  159. 

Mi'nos,  king  of  Crete,  18;  founder  of 
maritime  empire,  18;  legend  of  his 
search  for  Daedalus,  179,  n.  2. 

Min'o-taur,  18. 

Minyans  of  Orchomenus,  19,  n. 

Min'y-as,  treasury  of,  19,  n. 

Mith'ra-da'tes  the  Great,  457,  n. 


lADEX. 


571 


Mnesiphilus,  198. 

Mo'lo€h,  18,  96. 

Money,  unknown  in  the  Heroic  Age, 

Mo-re'a,  2. 

Muses,  the,  43,  n. 

Myc'a-le,  battle  of,  224,  225. 

My-ce'nce,  seat  of  prehistoric  race, 
5 ;  in  Dorian  times,  59 ;  excava- 
tions at,  by  Dr.  Schliemann,  25,  n. 

Mycenaean  Age,  relation  of  its  art  to 
that  of  historic  times,  471,  482. 

My'ron,  sculptor,  487. 

Myt'i-le'ne,  revolt  of,  292-299;  ad- 
mitted to  the  Peloponnesian 
league,  294;  its  surrender  to 
Athens,  295;  debate  at  Athens 
respecting,  296-298;  fate  of  the 
Mytilenxan  prisoners,  296;  its 
lands  given  to  Athenian  cleruchs, 
298. 

My'us,  239. 

Nab'o-na'di-us,  king  of  Babylon, 
forms  alliance  with   Croesus,   130. 

Naiads  (na'yads),  the,  43,  n. 

Nau'cra-tis,  founded,  87 ;  discovery 
on  site  of,  87,  n. 

Nau-pac'tus,  asylum  of   Messenians, 

243- 

Nax'os,  86 ;  secedes  from  the  Delian 
League,  240. 

Ne-ar'-ehus,  Alexander's  admiral,  450. 

Ne'me-a,  52. 

Nemean  games,  the,  52. 

Nem'e-sis,  43,  n. 

Nemesis,  doctrine  of,  in  Greek 
tragedy,  507. 

Neo-Platonism,  535;  its  conflict  with 
Christianity,  536. 

Neo-Pythagoreanism,  525. 

Ne're-ids,  the,  43,  n. 

Nes'tor,  22. 

Ni-cse'a,  founded,  450. 

Ni^'i-as,  Athenian  general,  resigns 
command  in  favor  of  Cleon,  313; 
Spartan  allies  dissatisfied  with  its 
terms,  327;  given  command  in  the 
Sicilian  Expedition,  337  ;  speech 
against  the  expedition,  337-339; 
reply  to  Alcibiades,  343;  his  letter 
to  the  Athenians,  360;  opposes  the 


retreat  from  Syracuse,  364;  con- 
sults his  soothsayers  respecting  the 
eclipse,  365;  encourages  his  sol- 
diers, 367;   his  execution,  370. 

Nigias,  Peace  of,  325;  is  violated 
by  both  parties,  362. 

Ni-cos'tra-tus,  Athenian  general,  325. 

Ni'ke  Apteros,  temple  of,  at  Athens, 
236. 

Nineveh,  destroyed  by  Medes  and 
Babylonians,  128. 

Nine  Ways,  the,  172. 

Ni'o-be  statues,  492. 

Ni-sse'a,  246. 

No'ti-um,  battle  of,  389. 

Nymphs,  the,  43,  n. 

0-des'sos,  founded,  83. 

O-de'um,  the,  264. 

Od'ys-sey,  sul^ject  of  the,  25.  (See 
I/omeric  poems.) 

O-dys'seus,  22;   device  of,  at  Troy,  23. 

Qid'i-pus,  tale  of,  19,  20. 

CEnophyta  (e-nof  i-ta),  battle  of,  248. 

0-i'leus,  22. 

Ol'bi-a,  founded,  83. 

Oligarchy,  supersedes  the  Homeric 
monarchy,  39. 

Ol'pne,  battle  of,  308,  n. 

0-lym'pi-a,  location  of,  5;  national 
games  at,  50,  51. 

0-lym'pi-ad,  First,  28;  mode  of  desig- 
nating dates  by,  51,  n. 

Olympian  Council,  the,  42,  43. 

Olympian  games,  the,  50,  51;  re- 
vival of,  53,  n.;  influence  upon 
Greek  sculpture,  484. 

Olympian  Mountains,  5. 

O-lym'pus,  Mount,  6. 

Olynthian  confederacy,  formation 
of,  406  ;  dissolved  by  Sparta,  406 ; 
towns  of,  destroyed  by  Philip  of 
Macedon,  434. 

0-lyn'thus,  Chalcidian  colony,  80; 
destroyed  by  Artabazus,  210;  de- 
stroyed by  Philip  of  Macedon,  434. 

O'pis,  mutiny  of  Alexander's  soldiers 
at,  451. 

Oracles  among  the  Greeks,  47-50, 
(See  Delphian  Oracle.') 

Oratory,  among  the  Greeks,  516; 
Greek  orators,  516. 


572 


INDEX. 


O're-os,  Euboean  cleruchy,  385,  n.  2. 

Or-€hom'e-nus,  remains  of,  19,  n. ; 
representative  of  primitive  civiliza- 
tion, 26,  n. 

Or'muzd,  134. 

Or'phe-us,  19. 

Or-thag'o-ras,  tyrant  of  Sicyon,  94, 
n.  3. 

Orthagoridae,  94,  n.  3. 

Or-tyg'i-a,  Dionysian  stronghold,  425 ; 
dismantled  by  Timoleon,  426. 

Os'sa,  Mount,  6. 

Ostracism,  instituted  by  Cleisthenes, 
123,124,  n. 

0-ta'ne§,  Persian  general,  138. 

Pa'€hes,  Athenian  general,  296. 

Pac-to'lus,  river,  129. 

Pie-o'ni-us,  Nike  of,  491. 

Pagascean  bay,  183. 

Painting,  Greek,  496;   use    of  color 

by  the  Greeks  in  connection  with 

sculpture  and  architecture,  496,  n.  3. 
Pallas,  42. 
Pam-phyl'i-a,  236. 
Pamphylians,  the,  171. 
Pan,  the  god,  154. 
Pan-ath'e-nae'a,  the  Great,  established 

by    Peisistratus,     117;     the    Less, 

117,  n. 
Panathenaic  festival,  the,  43,  44. 
Pan-do'ra,  myth  of,  545. 
Pantites,  Spartan  soldier,  188, 
Paphlagonians,  the,  171,  n. 
Pa'ros,  marbles  of,  10. 
Paros,      expedition       of       Miltiades 

against,  159. 
Par'a-lus,  Athenian  state-ship,  392. 
Paris,  son  of  Priam,  22. 
Par-nas'sus,  Mount,  6. 
Par'nes,  Mount,  6. 
Parrhasius     (par-ra'shi-us),    painter, 

497- 

Parthenon,  the,  mentioned,  266; 
treasure  in,  475,  n.  2;  description 
of,  479;   sculptures  of,  479,  n.  3. 

Parthia,  465. 

Pa-tro'clus,  23. 

Pau-sa'ni-as,  Spartan  regent,  sent 
against  Mardonius,  214;  at  Platsea, 
220,  n.  2,  221;  punishes  the  Me- 
dizing  party  at  Thebes,  223;   sends 


letter  to  Artabazus,  237;  his  tred.- 
son  discovered,  238;  his  death,  238. 

Pausanias,  traveller  and  writer,  539. 

Pei-ras'us,  the,  fortified  by  Themis- 
tocles,  162;  fortifications  of  the, 
229,  230;  becomes  a  great  com- 
mercial city,  230;  departure  of 
Sicilian  Expedition  from,  343 ;  dis- 
mantled by  the  Peloponnesians, 
393;   re-fortified,  404. 

Peis'is-trat'i-dce,  at  Susa,  165. 

Pei-sis'tra-tus,  makes  himself  tyrant  of 
Athens,  115,  116;  character  of  his 
rule,  116,  118. 

Pelasgian  architecture,  471. 

Pelasgians,  early  inhabitants  of 
Greece,  1 1 ;  relation  to  Hellenes, 
II,  12. 

Pe'li-on,  Mount,  6. 

Pel'la,  429,  n. 

Pe-lop'i-das,  liberates  Thebes,  407; 
in  Thessaly,  415;  goes  to  Susa  as 
an  envoy,  415;  his  mission  toThes- 
salians,  416;  his  arrest,  416;  his 
rescue,  416;   his  death,  416. 

Pel'o-pon-ne'sian  War,  the,  270-394; 
causes  of,  270-281;  divisions  of, 
282,  n.;  demoralization  of  Hellenic 
society  during,  306;  Sicilian  colo- 
nies  involved  in,  307;    results  of, 

394. 

Pel'o-pon-ne'sus,  the  name,  2;  cli- 
mate of  the,  9;  conquered  by  the 
Dorians,  26-28. 

Pe'lops,  fabled  colonizer  of  the  Pelo- 
ponnesus, 2, 

Pe-nel'o-pe,  31. 

Pe-ne'us,  river,  6. 

Pentekosiomedimni,  iii,  n.  I. 

Pen-tel'i-cus,  Mount,  6. 

Per-dic'cas,  king  of  Macedonia,  276, 
322,  431- 

Perdiccas,  regent,  456. 

Per'ga-mus,  city  and  state,  464,  n.  2; 
its  school  of  sculpture,  493;  great 
altar  at,  493. 

Per'i-an'der,  tyrant  of  Corinth,  92-94.. 

Per'i-cle§,  opposes  Cimon,  242;  comes 
to  the  head  of  affairs  in  Athens, 
244;  his  policy,  245;  forms  alli- 
ance with  Argos, Thessaly,  and  Meg- 
ara,    245 ;     reduces    to    obedience 


INDEX. 


573 


the  cities  of  Euboea,  252 ;  his  posi- 
tion at  Athens,  254,  255;  attacks 
upon,  256,  n.;  suppresses  revolt  at 
Samos,  257,  258;  his  law  limiting 
citizenship,  258;  his  son  by  Aspa- 
sia,  256,  n.;  his  policy  in  regard  to 
Athenian  colonization,  260;  takes 
citizens  into  pay  of  the  state,  261; 
adorns  Athens  with  public  build- 
ings, 263-266 ;  effects  of  his  system 
of  public  doles,  269;  attempts  of 
Spartans  to  discredit,  280 ;  funeral 
oration  of,  286-289;  fined  by  the 
Athenians,  291;  his  death,  292; 
death  of  his  sons,  292. 

Pericleg,  son  of  the  statesman,  390. 

Pericles,  the  Age  of,  254-269;  general 
character  of  the  era,  254,  256;  the 
limits  of  the  period,  255,  n. 

Per'i-oe'§i,  the,  in  Laconia,  62. 

Per-seph'o-ne,  cult  of,  44,  45. 

Per-sep'o-lis,  structures  of  Darius  at, 
135;   destroyed  by  Alexander,  447. 

Per'seus,  alleged  progenitor  of  the 
Persians,  180. 

Perseus,  king  of  Macedonia,  458. 

Persia,  religious  revolution  in, 1 34, 1 35.    ! 

Persian    empire,    the    beginnings   of,    : 
128;   rise  of,  128-139. 

Persians,  of  Aryan  race,  1 28. 

Phalanx,  Macedonian,  Theban  origin 
of,  430. 

Phal'a-ris,  tyrant  of  Agrigentum,  96, 

97-  i 

Pha-le'rum,  port  of  Athens,  162.  j 

Pha'na-ba'zus,   Persian   satrap,   377;    i 

tries    to    outbid    Tissaphernes    for 

Spartan  help,  378;   forms   alliance 

with  Spartans,  386. 
Pha'ros,  the,  at  Alexandria,  467. 
Phei'di-as,  his  masterpieces,  489. 
Phei'don,  king  of  Argos,  59-61 ;   new 

coinage  introduced  by,  60. 
Pheidonian  scales  and  measures,  60. 
Phi-dip'pi-deg,    Greek    runner,     153, 

154. 
Philip  II.,  king  of  Macedon,  his 
youth,  430;  his  accession  to  the 
throne,  431 ;  his  conquests  in  Chal- 
cidice  and  Thrace,  431-434;  in 
the  Second  Sacred  War,  434;  his 
victory  at  Chaeronea,  435 ;   his  plan 


to  invade  Asia,  437 ;  his  death,  438; 

results  of  his  reign,  438. 
Phi-lip'pi,  founded,  432. 
Philius,  184,  n. 
Phi'lo,  the  Jew,  535. 
Phil'o-pce'men,  461. 
Philosophy,  Greek,   521-536;   use  of 

verse  by  early  philosophers,   521 ; 

the    Milesian    philosophers,    522; 

conflict  between,  and  Christianity, 

536. 
Pho-c£e'a,  86. 
Phocians,  in  Second  Sacred  War,  434, 

435- 
Phocion,    Athenian   statesman,    433, 

459i  n.  3- 

Pho'cis,  district  of  Greece,  2;  devas- 
tated by  the  Persians,  191. 

Phoe-bi'das,  Spartan  general,  406. 

Phoe'bus,  42. 

Phoenicia,  trade  of,  crippled  by  Assy- 
rian conquests,  78;  brought  under 
Persian  control,  133. 

Phoenicians,  supposed  early  settlers 
in  Greece,  16. 

Phratries,  1 12,  n. 

Phra'try,  the,  37. 

Pindar,  505. 

I'indus,  Mount,  5. 

Piracy  in  the  Heroic  Age,  32. 

Pi'sa,  city  in  Elis,  60. 

Pisatans,  the,  strive  to  secure  the 
guardianship  of  Olympia,  73,  74; 
are  reduced  to  serfs,  74; 

Plague,  at  Athens,  289,  290. 

Platae'a,  territory  of,  declared  sacred 
after  the  battle  of  Plataea,  222,  223; 
siege  of,  by  the  Spartans,  in  Pelo- 
ponnesian  War,  299-302;  its  de- 
struction by  the  Thebans,  305 ;  its 
restoration,  405;  its  destruction 
again,  407. 

Platsea,  battle  of,  21 7-221. 

Plataeans,  the,  aid  their  patrons,  the 
Athenians,  against  the  Spartans, 
125;  at  Marathon,  154,  155; 
awarded  prize  at  Plataea,  221;  as- 
signed the  duty  of  caring  for  the 
graves  at  Plataea,  223;  in  the  Pelo- 
ponnesian  War  (429-427  B.C.), 
299-306;  their  defense  before  the 
Spartan  judges,  303,  304. 


574 


INDEX. 


Plato,  at  court  of  Dionysius  I.  of 
Syracuse,  423;  visits  Dionysius  the 
Younger,  425 ;   life  and  works,  529. 

Pleis-to'a-nax,  Spartan  king,  bribed 
by  Pericles,  252. 

Plo-ti'nus,  535. 

Plu'tarch,  519. 

I'nyx  (niks),the,  at  Athens,  121,  n.  3. 

I 'olemarch  (pol'e-mark) ,  appointment 
of  first,  103;   office  of,  105. 

Po-lyb'i-us,  historian,  519. 

Pol'y-clei'tus,  sculptor,  490. 

Po-lyc'ra-tes,  tyrant  of  Samos,  94- 
96;   fall  of,  136,  137. 

Pol-y-do'rus,  496. 

Pol'yg-no^tus,  painter,  496. 

Pol'y-ni'ce§,  20. 

Po-lyx'e-na,  daughter  of  Priam,  497. 

Pontus,  state  in  Asia  Minor,  457  n.     , 

Po'rus,  Indian  prince,  449. 

Po-sei'don,  42. 

Pot'i-dae'a,  Corinthian  colony,  80; 
besieged  by  Artabanus,  210;  revolt 
of,  against  Athens,  276;  plague  in 
the  Athenian  camp  at,  291 ;  its 
surrender  to  the  Athenians,  291 ; 
captured  by  Philip  II.,  431. 

Prax-it'e-le§,  492;  the  Hermes  of, 
492. 

Priam,  22,  24;   treasure  of,  24,  n. 

Pri-e'ne,  475,  n.  I. 

Probuli,  the,  374,  n.  i. 

Prod'i-cus,  527. 

Pro-me'theus,  the  Titan,  509,  n.  i . 

Pro-pon'tis,  the,  colonies  on,  81. 

Prop'y-lae'a,  the,  266. 

Pro-tag'o-ras,  527. 

Pryt'a-ne'um,  37. 

Pryt'a-neg,  the,  122,  n. 

Pryt'a-ny,  122,  n. 

Psam-met'i-ehus,  tyrant  of  Corinth, 
94. 

Psyt-ta-le'i-a,  island,  201. 

Ptol'e-my,  Claudius,  astronomer,  539. 

Ptolemy  L,  Soter,  466;  II.,  Phila- 
delphus,  467;  III,,  Eu-er-ge'tes, 
467. 

Punjab  (poon-jab'),  136. 

Pyd'na,  captured  by  Philip  II.,  431. 

Pyd'na,  battle  of  (162  B.C.),  458. 

Py'los,  seized  and  fortified  by  the 
Athenians,  308-310. 


Pyrr'ha,  6. 

Pyr'rho,  the  sceptic,  534. 

Py-thag'o-ras,  school    of,  at   Croton, 

88,   legend   of,   523;     doctrines  of 

his  school,  524. 
Pythagoreanism,  524. 
Pyth'i-a,  the,  48. 
Pythian    games,    51,    52;    institution 

of,  54. 
Py'thon,  slain  by  Apollo,  46. 

Religion  of  the  Greeks,  40-56. 

Rhe'gi-um,  founded,  85;  receives 
Messenian  fugitives,  70. 

Rhodes,  island  and  city,  9;  settled  by 
Dorians,  29;  besieged  by  Deme- 
trius Poliorcetes,  456,  n.  2;  its 
schools  of  sculpture,  494;  colossus 
at,  495. 

Rivers  of  Greece,  the,  6-8;  myths 
respecting,  7,  8;  subterranean  chan- 
nels of,  8. 

Rox-a'na,  bride  of  Alexander,  449. 

Sacred  Band,  the  Theban,  at  Ctise- 
ronea,  437. 

Sacred  War,  First,  54;  Second,  434; 
Third,  436. 

Salsethus,  leader  of  Mytilensean  re- 
volt, 296. 

Sal-a-min'i-a,  Athenian  state-ship  sent 
for  Alcibiades,  350. 

Sal'a-mis,  island,  9;  contention  re- 
specting, between  Athens  and 
Megara,  108,  109;  is  settled  by 
Athenian  cleruchs,  109,  n.  i ;  Greek 
generals  in  council  at,  197-199. 

Salamis,  battle  of,  203,  204;  spoils 
dedicated  to  the  gods,  207,  208; 
the  prizes  of  valor  allotted,  208, 
209. 

Salamis,  in  Cyprus,  battle  of,  249. 

Sa'mos,  island,  9;  settled  by  lonians, 
29;  stronghold  of  Polycrates,  95; 
ravaged  by  Persians,  137;  revolt 
of,  against  Athens,  257;  suppres- 
sion of  the  revolt,  258;  granted 
independence  by  Athens,  381. 

Sappho  (saf'fo),  504. 

Sar'dis,  capital  of  Lydia,  129;  the 
burning  of,  143. 

Sa-ron'ic  Gulf,  9. 


INDEX. 


5^5 


Sceptics,  the,  534. 

Schliemann,  Dr.,  excavations  of,  at 
Hissai-lik,  24,  n.;  at  Mycense,  25, 
n.;   at  Tiryns,  26,  n. 

S^i'a-thus,  island,  182. 

S^i-o'ne,  revolts  from  Athens,  324. 

Sco'pas,  492. 

Sculpture,  Greek,  482-496;  begin- 
nings of,  482;  circumstances  that 
aided  development  of,  483;  influ- 
ence of  gymnastic  art  on,  482; 
archaic  period,  485-487;  period  of 
perfection,  487-492. 

Scyl'la,  43,  n. 

S^y'ros,  made  Athenian  cleruchy,  234. 

Scythians,  the,  expedition  of  Darius 
against,  137-139. 

Sedition  Laws  of  Solon,  112,  113. 

Sel-eu-ci'a,  463,  464,  n.  I. 

Se-leu-^i-diie,  kingdom  of,  463-465; 
names  of  the,  463,  n.  2. 

Se-leu'cus  Ni-ca'tor,  457,  463. 

Se-li'nus,  quarrel  with  Egesta,  336; 
destroyed  by  Carthaginians,  419; 
sculptures  from,  486. 

Se'pi-as,  Cape,  182. 

Sep'tu-a-gint,  the,  467,  n.  i. 

Ses'tus,  besieged  by  the  Athenians, 
226. 

Seven  against  Thebes,  legend  of  the, 
19,  21. 

Sicilian  Expedition,  336-371;  debate 
at  Athens  respecting,  337-342;  de- 
parture of,  from  the  Peiraeus,  343; 
the  end,  369;  how  news  of  disas- 
ter-was received  at  Athens,  372. 

Sicily,  Greek  colonies  in,  85,  86; 
golden  era  of  the  Sicihan  Greek 
cities,  427;  affairs  of,  between  413 
and  436  B.C.,  419-428. 

Si9'y-on  (sish'i-on),  rising  power  of, 
61;  forms  early  alliance  with 
Sparta,  73. 

Si-mon'i-de§  of  Ceos,  lyric  poet,  verses 
commemorating  the  heroes  of  Ther- 
mopylae, 187,  188. 

Si'non,  23. 

Si-no'pe,  founded,  82. 

Siwah  (see'wa),  oasis  of,  446. 

Slavery,  in  the  Heroic  Age,  31 ;  short 
account  of,  552;  how  viewed  by 
Greek  philosophers,  552. 


Smer'dis,  134. 

Social  War,  the,  432, 

Socrates,  protests  against  the  condem- 
nation of  the  Athenian  generals 
after  battle  of  Arginusae,  390;  his 
trial  and  death,  400-402;  his 
teachings,  528. 

Sog'di-a'na,  conquest  of,  by  Alexan- 
der, 449. 

Sol'li-um,  327,  n. 

So'lon,  counsels  the  Athenians  in 
Megarian  war,  109;  his  economic 
reforms,  109-111;  constitutional 
reforms,  in,  Ii2;  special  laws 
enacted  by,  1 1 2,  113;  travels  of, 
113,  114;  his  interview  with  Croe- 
sus, 114. 

Sophists,  the,  526, 

Soph'o-clesj,  Athenian  commander, 
308,  309- 

Sophocleg,  tragic  poet,  509. 

Sos'i-cle§,     Corinthian     deputy,     de- 
nounces Sparta's  course  in  attempt-  . 
ing  to  restore  the  tyranny  at  Athens, 
126. 

Sparta,  location  of,  61,  62;  the  name, 
61,  n.  2;  early  history  of,  63-74; 
two  kings  at,  65,  n.;  origin  of  the 
dual  monarchy,  65,  n.;  acquires  in- 
fluence at  Olympia,  73,  74;  forms 
alliance  with  Croesus,  130;  de- 
stroyed by  an  earthquake,  242; 
secret  alliance  with  Athens  (421 
B.C.),  328;  her  hegemony  in  Pelo- 
ponnesus restored  by  battle  of 
Mantinea,  331-333;  situation  at, 
after  the  Sicilian  Expedition,  376; 
her  hegemony  after  Peloponnesian 
War,  396-410;  congress  at  (371 
j        B.C.),  408. 

I    Spartan  constitution,  the,  64-66. 
j    Spartan  supremacy,  establishment  of, 
in  Central  and   Northern  Pelopon- 
nesus, 71-74. 

Spartans,  numlier  of,  62;  detachment 
of,  shut  up  in  Sphacteria,  310;  their 
surrender,  314;  import  of  this 
event,  314;  given  up  by  the  Athe- 
nians, 328;  fined  by  the  Amphic- 
tyons,  411. 

Spar'ti-a'tae,  the  (see  Spartans). 

Sphac-te'ri-a,  island,  Spartans  shut  up 


576 


INDEX. 


in,    310;      their     surrender,     314, 

315- 

Sphinx,  riddle  of  the,  20. 

Spor'a-des,  the,  8. 

Sthen'e-la'i-das,  ephor,  279. 

Stoics,  the,  532. 

Stra'bo,  the  geographer,  539. 

Stry'mon,  river,  the  Persians  at,  172. 

Styx  (stix)  stream,  7,  8. 

Su'ni-uni,  Cape,  156. 

Sunium,  Cyprian  city,  475,  n.  2. 

Suppliant,  the,  55. 

Su'sa,  capital  of  Persian  empire,  135; 
taken  by  Alexander,  447. 

Syb'a-ris,  founded,  84;  destroyed  by 
Croton,  85,  n. 

Syb'o-ta,  battle  of,  275. 

Symposium,  the,  features  of,  549. 

Syracuse,  founded,  85;  under  the 
tyrant  Gelo,  177,  178;  debate  at, 
respecting  the  Athenian  Expedition, 
345-348;  operations  of  the  Athe- 
nians at,  in  the  Peloponnesian  War, 
359;  under  the  Dionysian  tyrants, 
420-426;  its  golden  era,  426;  in- 
dependence extinguished  by  the 
Romans,  428. 

Sys-si'tia,  67. 

Tan'a-gra,  battle  of,  248. 
Ta'ras,  founded,  84. 
Ta-ren'tum  (see  Taras). 
Ta-yg'e-tus    mountains,    6;     iron    in 

the,  10. 
Te'ge-a,  alliance  with  Sparta,  71,  72. 
Tegeans,   the,    at    Plat^ea,   216,   217, 

219. 
Tel'lus,  114. 
Tem'pe,  Vale  of,  description   of  the, 

2;    visited   by  Xerxes,    173,    174; 

Greek     garrison     in,     181 ;     their 

withdrawal  from,  182. 
Temples,  Grecian,  as  banks  of  deposit, 

475,  n.  2. 
Ten'e-dos,  146. 
Ten   Thousand,    expedition    of    the, 

398-400. 
Tha'leg,  522. 
Thasians,  the,  entertain  Xerxes,  173; 

revolt  against  the  Athenians,  240, 

Tha'sos,  1 73. 


J    The-ag'e-nes,   tyrant  of  Megara,  94, 

n.  3,  106. 
j   Theatres,    Grecian,    description     of, 
i        480;   entertainments  of,  546. 
Thebans,  the,  at  Thermopylce,   185- 

187;    accusers    of    the    Platseans, 

305- 

Thebes,  city  of  legends,  3;  founded 
by  Cadmus,  1 6 ;  War  of  the  Seven 
against,  19-21;  refuses  to  join  the 
alliance  of  Greek  cities  in  the  Per- 
sian Wars,  179,  n.  3;  Medizing 
party  in,  punished  by  Pausanias, 
223,  224;  seized  by  the  Spartans, 
406;  liberated  by  Pelopidas,  407; 
hegemony  of,  410-418, 

The-mis'to-cleg,  his  character,  160; 
his  naval  policy,  160,  161 ;  his 
agency  in  convening  the  Council  of 
Corinth,  176;  at  Artemisium,  190, 
191 ;  interprets  the  oracle  of  the 
"wooden  wall,"  195-196;  at  Sala- 
mis,  198,  199;  levies  fine  upon 
Medizing  cities,  206;  honored  by 
the  Spartans,  after  Salamis,  208, 
209;  outwits  the  Spartans,  228, 
229;  his  policy  in  regard  to  the 
Peirceus  and  the  Athenian  navy, 
229,  230;  is  ostracized,  238;  at 
Argos,  238;  at  Susa,  239;  made 
governor  of  Magnesia,  239;  his 
death,  239,  240. 

The-oc'ri-tus,  poet,  519. 

The-og'nis,  Megarian  poet,  94,  n.  3. 

Theoricon,  the,  261,  n. 

The'ra,  island,  IZZ- 

Ther'ma,  army  of  Xerxes  at,  173. 

Ther-mop'y-lae,  battle  of,  183-187; 
incidents  of,  187,  188. 

Thermopylae,  Pass  of,  the  name, 
184;  description  of,  184. 

Ther-san'der,  21,  n. 

The-se'um,  the,  235. 

The'seus,  one  of  the  Seven  against 
Thebes,  20. 

Theseus,  king  of  Athens,  102. 

Theseus,  relics  of,  transported  to 
Athens,  234. 

Thes-moth'e-tae,  the,  at  Athens,  104; 
duties  of,  105. 

Thes'pi-oe,  184,  n. 

Thes'pis,  tragic  poet,  506. 


INDEX. 


577 


Thes'sa-ly,  description  of,  2. 

Thessalians,  the,  in  the  Persian 
Wars,  181. 

Thetes,  iii,  n.  i. 

Thim'bron,  Spartan  general,  403,  n.  I. 

Thirty  Tyrants,  the,  of  Athens,  397. 

Thirty  Years'  Truce,  the,  events  lead- 
ing up  to,  251,  252;  its  articles, 
252,  253;  import  of,  253. 

Thrace,  gold  mines  in,  10 ;  tribes  and 
cities  of,  subdued  by  the  Persians, 

137.  138,  139- 

Thras'y-bu'lus,  tyrant  of  Miletus,  93. 

Thrasybulus,  Athenian  general,  383; 
overthrows  the  Thirty  Tyrants,  397. 

Thra-syl'lus,  Athenian  general,  383. 

Thu-cyd'i-des,  son  of  Melesias,  ostra- 
cism of,  256. 

Thucydideg,  the  historian,  charac- 
ter of  the  speeches  in  his  history, 
271,  n.  3;  banished  from  Athens, 
324;    his   life,    514;     his    history, 

5»5- 

Fhu'ri-a,  founded,  260. 

Thyr'e-a,  72,  n.,  286. 

Ti-mo'le-on,  the  Liberator,  frees 
Syracuse  from  the  tyrant  Dionysius 
the  Younger,  426;  his  death, 
427. 

Ti'mon,  the  misanthrope,  330. 

Ti-re'si-as,  47,  n.  i. 

Ti'ryns,  seat  of  prehistoric  race,  5. 

Tis'sa-pher'neg,  Persian  satrap,  377; 
makes  overtures  to  the  Spartans, 
378;  forms  alliance  with  Sparta, 
380;  makes  false  promises  to  Spar- 
tans, 382;  his  break  with  them, 
386;  superseded  by  Cyrus,  388; 
betrays  the  Greek  generals  after 
battle  of  Cunaxa,  399;  supersedes 
Cyrus,  402;  his  death,  403. 

Tol'mi-des,  Athenian  general,  251. 

To-ro'ne,  captured  by  Cleon,  325. 

Tra-pe'zus,  founded,  82;  arrival  at,  of 
the  Ten  Thousand  Greeks,  400. 

Treb'i-zond  (see  Trapezus). 


I    Tro'ad,  the,  24. 

Troe'zen,  receives  the  Athenian  fugi- 
I        tives,  196. 
I    Troy,  22. 

Trojan  War,  the,  legends  of,  21-24  ; 
I        basis  of  the  legend,  28,  n. 
!    Tyrants,  the  Greek,  age   of,  90-99; 
'        character  and  origin  of  rule,  90,  91 ; 
Greek    feeling    towards,    91,    92; 
Sparta's  opposition  to,  92 ;    benefits 
conferred  by,  97-99;   overthrow  of, 
99;    expulsion   from   Athens,   118- 
120;  Peisistratidse,  at  Athens,  115- 
120. 
Tyre,  siege  of,  by  Alexander,  444. 
Tyr-tae'us,  his  war  hymns,  71. 

Waldstein,  quoted,  288,  n.  2. 

Woman,  in  the  Heroic  Age,  restric- 
tion on  freedom  of,  at  Athens, 
113;  social  position  of,  in  Greece, 
544- 

Xan-thip'pe,  528,  n.  I. 
Xan-thip'pus,  Athenian  general,  224. 
Xen'o-phon,  with  the  Ten  Thousand 
I        Greeks,  399,  400;   his  works,  515. 
I    Xerxes  (zerks'ez)  L,  prepares  to  in- 
[        vade  Greece,  165-168;   calls  coun- 
!        cil  of  Persian  nobles,  165,  166,  n.; 
i        crosses  the  Hellespont,    168,  169; 
!        reviews  army  at  Doriscus,  170-172; 
visits  Pass  of  Tempe,  173,  174;   at 
Athens,    197;    after    the   battle  of 
Salamis,  204,   205 ;    his  retreat   to 
the  Hellespont,  207. 
Xu'thus,  12,  n. 

Za-leu'cus,  legislator,  85. 

Ze'no,  the  Stoic,  532. 

Zeus  (ziis),  42;  oracles  of,  47. 

Zeus  Amnion,  oracle  of,  446. 

Zeus  Olympius,   Pheidian  statue   of, 

489.      _   . 
Zeuxis  (zuks'iss),  painter,  497. 
Zo'ro-as'tri-an-ism,  134,  135. 


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